The far-right Florida Family Association is enraged that Degrassi, a Canadian teen drama on TeenNick, now features a female-to-male transgender character. TeenNick, charging the show with advancing “salacious and irresponsible propaganda.” While Adam has been a character on Degrassi since Season 10 began in July of 2010, leading to criticism from the Media Research Center’s Brent Bozell, Religious Right groups now are demanding a boycott of advertisers on MTV, which operates TeenNick. The FFA has also attacked Campbell’s for making halal soups and monitors the “behavior of Gay Day patrons” at Disney World.
The article in WorldNetDaily even features a fan video about the relationship between Adam and Fiona, describing “intimate” details of their relationship (spoiler alert: they break up):
"You would think by the number of episodes that MTV devotes to including the relationship between a female to male transgender high school student and a bisexual lesbian student that such relationships are common occurrence in America's high schools," said the Florida Family Association in its alert to constituents. The family group has provided an email link for viewers to contact the show's advertisers with their concerns.
The organization identifies advertisers as State Farm Insurance, Proctor and Gamble, Kraft, Johnson & Johnson, Mars, Coca Cola, Loreal, Kimberly Clark and other major industrial names. "The odds of this bizarre relationship occurring in high school are likely less than one in a million. Yet, MTV feeds this salacious and irresponsible propaganda to an audience made up almost exclusively of young teens and children as if it were commonplace," the family association continued.
"MTV airs a free promo for PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) on DeGrassi which directs kids to an organization that will encourage our youth to embrace a different sexual identity that may stay with them for life," the organization said .
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The family group notes the "Chasing Pavements II" episode of the program "contains graphic intimate relations between the female to male transgender character Adam (Gracie) and bisexual, lesbian character Fiona."
"In one scene Fiona kisses Adam, pulls up Adam's shirt and rubs her hand slightly above Adam's groin," the alert said.
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"These are just a few examples of the irresponsible content of the DeGrassi shows which push transgender identity," said the Florida Family Association.
"Unfortunately, millions of young teens and children witness this irresponsible affirmation of a transgender lifestyle and are directed to an organization that will encourage kids to embrace a sexual identity which is different from their birth sex."
