Representation of Sexuality
How a work of animation for younger audiences is breaking boundaries.
The television show known to many as Steven Universe (2013) has broken some major stigmas in its 5th season of production. For the first time in cartoon networks history, a wedding between two individuals that use the same pronoun occurred. The episodes air date marked a huge step forward in representation in the U.S., however, some in other countries were not in a position to see the engagement kiss of the two, because of the censorship of the content.
To many in the LGBTQ+ community and those in the animation community, that was an outrage. The fact that major global superpowers decided to take a step back instead of one forward enraged the community.
The show Steven Universe (2013) has done a lot of work to further representation of minorities and show how concepts of femininity and masculinity are just that — concepts. The creator of the show, Rebecca Sugar, has worked tirelessly with their team of writers to create a show that can include all.
The show follows the growth of a boy, Steven, into a young man through the craziest of story-lines. Steven lives in a tourist town called Beach City with a team of aliens whose gender is aligned towards the side of female, even though their species has only one gender. However, before Steven lived with these aliens, he lived with his widowed Dad.
Steven’s best friend’s name is Connie Maheswaran who is his sparring partner. Connie comes from a family of hard-working Indian Americans. Her mother, Dr. Priyanka Maheswaran, is a medical professional at a nearby hospital and her father, Doug Maheswaran, is a traveling security guard.
As one can see from the brief synopsis above, Steven Universe (2013) is a television show that definitely represents more than what your typical American cartoon provides.
The inclusion of single parenting, non-binary women, and people from all different races and ethnicities is incredibly rare in the industry. However, Steven Universe (2013) has really changed the game since.
This brings us back to the censorship of this inclusive cartoon. Countries such as Russia even stoped carried the show a few seasons back after the show included content that showed two individuals with the same pronoun to have some slight romantic interest in one another.
However, if we look past the restrictions that other countries have implemented upon the show, we can see how much this show may possibly be helping the youth of America.
The increase of representation in the show of multiple families and lifestyles allows children to see themselves in the media that they consume. Often times, children feel like they need to change themselves in order to fit into society. This ideal comes from their interpretation of animated material as a direct representation of their personal communities. As adults, we realize that the material we once watched at a younger age was nothing but a collection of stereotypes conjoined together.
It is especially important that the most recent generation of youth is allowed to experience the most inclusive decade of animation yet. The children growing up now are growing up in a time of polarization and national movements. Cartoons that include multiple races, genders, sexualities, and family types can allow them to recognize the flaws that our nation has and contribute towards the effort of healing it.
With the inclusion of a diverse cast of characters freely expressing their sexuality, Steven Universe (2013) really is making the world a better place.
