The beloved animated preschool series Peppa Pig has introduced its first same-sex parent family in its 18-year history!
The landmark moment arrived during an episode entitled “Families,” which aired on Milkshake!, the preschool programming strand of Paramount Global-owned Channel 5 in the UK on Tuesday 6th September 2022.
In the short scene, Peppa’s classmate Penny Polar Bear talks about her two mummies and what makes each special.
While drawing a picture of her family – two polar bears in dresses – Penny says: “I’m Penny Polar Bear. I live with my mummy and my other mummy. One mummy is a doctor and one mummy cooks spaghetti. I love spaghetti.”
While there’s been a few infuriatingly predictable responses online (sighs), many parents and education groups welcomed the inclusion. In 2019, campaigners launched a petition calling on the writers of Peppa Pig to include a same-sex parent family, to make it more inclusive for all children.
The petition, which attracted more than 23,000 signatures, stated: “Children watching Peppa Pig are at an impressionable age, and excluding same-sex families will teach them that only families with either a single parent or two parents of different sexes are normal.
“This means that children of same-sex parents may feel alienated by Peppa Pig, and that other children may be more likely to bully them, simply through ignorance.
“Peppa Pig is not just for entertainment, children are inevitably learning from it too.”
Robbie de Santos, director of communications and external affairs at LGBT rights charity Stonewall, described seeing a same-sex family in fictional Peppatown as "fantastic".
"Many of those who watch the show will have two mums or two dads themselves and it will mean a lot to parents and children that their experiences are being represented on such an iconic children's programme," he told the BBC.
Peppa Pig first aired on screens in 2004 and has since grown to become the pre-schoolers best friend. Distributed in 180 countries, the Peppa Pig license is a benchmark that affects parents and especially children from all continents and cultures by supporting them in everyday life situations. She helps preschoolers explore and expand their understanding of their own world through the experiences of the heroine Peppa. The series airs on Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. channels globally.
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Originally published: September 07, 2022 at 18:19 BST.
“I’m Penny Polar Bear. I live with my mommy and my other mommy. One mommy is a doctor and one mommy cooks spaghetti. I love spaghetti.”
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