“You can't punch the gay out of me any more than I can punch the ignoramus out of you”
—Kurt to Karofsky, Never Been Kissed (Glee 2011)
When we look back at the phenomenon that is Glee we cannot seem to remember that this was a TV series that debuted in 2009 and it was one of the first series that openly showcased members of the LGBTQ+ Community. Looking back at Glee in 2021 it is hard to understand the controversy behind the amazing script by Ryan Murphy, and even though nowadays we can criticize Glee for their multiple misinterpretations of gay, lesbian, and bisexual people, I of all people would like to talk a little bit about the impact that it had on mainstream media specially with openly representing gay and lesbian relationships.
When we look at Glee we must understand where it came from. The original pitch of this story was made by the actor Ian Breennan who wrote a first pitch based on his experience on show choir, this was a show that was originally meant to be a movie and was picked up by Ryan Murphy because of his theater kid experience. The pilot of Glee aired on television on May 19th, 2009, after American Idol, and based solely on its first episode it garnered one of the biggest crowds in history for a pilot. The students of McKinley High live the typical high school drama and experience lessons that will help them grow up and mature. Glee is a club of show choir where high school perform songs by the artist of their choice in a dramatic and eccentric manner, and the main point of Glee, and it’s thesis, is to create a safe space where anyone regardless of where they are from is welcomed in the Glee club.
Now that we have some back story I want to talk about one of the most crucial plotlines of the series, which is Kurt Hummel coming out as gay, as the season goes on we see him come to terms with his sexuality and he starts showing his sexuality to those around him. Now in 2021 it might not feel like a big deal but having a gay high schooler like that in network television in 2009 was a huge deal for members of the LGBTQ+ community. Kurt’s storyline was one of the theses used argument of the show which is that anyone from any background is welcome and valid, even when the show sometimes did not execute this moto correctly. Kurt struggles with discrimination and overall harassment to the point where he changes schools. Now we must understand that mainstream media has always made efforts to maintain things as traditional as possible since the people at the top we're never focused on creating inclusivity but rather making money and keeping people comfortable was the way to do it. Looking back on 2009 when the pilot was presented we can see why with that attention mainstream media started creating inclusivity around race, looks, disabilities and sexual orientation.
Glee opened up the doors for many people around the world to feel themselves represented in the small screen, to relate, and to experience representation. I believe at that point that the media took a turn to represent the underrepresented because that what made Glee successful. Maybe some of you may think that it was not that much of a representation but when we see it all around with a platform that is only interested in money and Glee creating millions of dollars you can see why at that point the media started to believe by representing the underrepresented would make more people be interested in watching television. Glee creates the space not only for future Gay Icons but also for millions of people to feel themselves represented in the screen and that was the real power that glee held over the world during the early 2010’s.
ความคิดเห็น