It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is Exploitive— not Progressive

the laughtivist
Sep 5, 2018 · 1 min read
The all-straight cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Using gay men and gay male sexuality for laughs while refusing to hire any actual gay men is not progressive, it’s exploitive. It’s Always Sunny joins a long list of television shows that claim to be progressive for including gay men in their storylines. But because these shows refuse to work with actual, real-life gay men as regular, on-camera members of their teams, they are not progressive at all. They exploit gay men for laughs while excluding actual gay men from a seat at the table. Other shows that do the same thing are:

Saturday Night Live
The Daily Show
30Rock
Arrested Development
Kim’s Convenience
Lady Dynamite
Grace & Frankie
Etc.

It would be easier for me to list the television shows that don’t engage in this homophobic trope. Regardless, we should stop fawning over television shows as progressive when in fact their exclusion is just a different version of the same old bigotry.

Welcome to a place where words matter. On Medium, smart voices and original ideas take center stage - with no ads in sight. Watch
Follow all the topics you care about, and we’ll deliver the best stories for you to your homepage and inbox. Explore
Get unlimited access to the best stories on Medium — and support writers while you’re at it. Just $5/month. Upgrade