Disney
Last week, we celebrated when we heard that Beauty and the Beast is set to feature a gay character, a groundbreaking first for Disney. But not everyone’s happy about Le Fou’s little crush on Gatson.
After the exciting news broke, the Henagar Drive-In Theater in Henagar, Alabama decided it will no longer screen 2017’s most anticipated movie. The “family-friendly” cinema explained why on their Facebook page, which seems to have been removed.
Their statement read: “It is with great sorrow that I have to tell our customers that we will not be showing Beauty and the Beast at the Henagar Drive-In when it comes out. When companies continually force their views on us we need to take a stand.”
“We all make choices and I am making mine. If we can not take our 11 year old grand daughter and 8 year old grandson to see a movie we have no business watching it. If I can’t sit through a movie with God or Jesus sitting by me then we have no business showing it.”
“I know there will be some that do not agree with this decision. That’s fine. We are first and foremost Christians. We will not compromise on what the Bible teaches. We will continue to show family oriented films so you can feel free to come watch wholesome movies without worrying about sex, nudity, homosexuality and foul language.”
Really? It’s important to note that this drive-in is currently screening A Dog’s Purpose, which has been slammed by PETA after footage from the set leaked showing a pup being forced into dangerous water. So animal cruelty is ok, is it?
And in other disappointing Beauty and the Beast news, the Russian government is looking into a nationwide ban on the movie because of its “exclusively gay moment” and the country’s strict laws against spreading “gay propaganda” among minors.
According to the BBC, Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky is planning to screen the film to see if the ban will go ahead. Meanwhile, an MP is urging Medinsky to “take measures to totally ban” it if he finds “elements of propaganda of homosexuality.”
Both attempts to stop people seeing the classic film just goes to show how far we still have to go as a society. Who would’ve thought a minor storyline about a gay character would causes so much controversy!
And to all the LGBTIQ+ people out there who might think less of themselves because of this upsetting news, please don’t. Know that just being who you are is NOT something that’s worthy of being banned. You are beautiful just the way you are and there’s nothing wrong with celebrating that and being represented in movies like everyone else.
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