Many people grew up watching the Muppet show and they probably looked forward to each and every episode that they saw. The show was from the 1970s and it continues to play on TV and on streaming services, including Disney+. Perhaps you are more familiar with the Muppets because of the part that they play on Sesame Street but the variety show from the 70s that carried the name ‘The Muppet Show’ was one epic episode after another. More than likely, you remember laughing at many of the things that you saw and heard but Disney+ is doing something that is right in line with the times.
Disney is now including a disclaimer at the beginning of each of the Muppet show episodes. Those old episodes may include some content that would be considered offensive by people and more than likely, there have been plenty of comments on Twitter and other social media platforms about it. The disclaimer covers the bases, reading: “This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it, and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together.”
Perhaps you remember some of the celebrity guests from the Muppet show. The puppets would interact with those guests, including some that would sing, dance, or just entertain in some way or another. Perhaps you didn’t even recognize the offensive content, such as Muppets drilling for oil while wearing Arab outfits for Johnny Cash playing the guitar with the Confederate flag behind him.
Fortunately, Disney+ has decided not to pull the Muppet show from the air but they did add the disclaimer, just so that nobody got their feelings hurt. On the other hand, they have been removing movies, such as Dumbo and Peter Pan from the child section of Disney+. It’s a good thing that Kermit the frog rated a little higher.
