Boy howdy do I ever got something to say about that second episode.
Like a lot of people, I recently made the decision to binge watch Netflix's newly released reboot of the iconic 1990's TV show "Sabrina the Teenage Witch". There is a lot I could say about the show, but I want to focus on something that happened in the second episode that upset me. Spoilers ahead, obviously.
Basically, Sabrina teams up with three other witches to punish some football players who have been bullying her friend (who is clearly non-binary). She lures the football players into a dark mine and then gets them naked by making them think they are making out with her and her sexy witch friends. Really, she has used her powers to trick the boys into making out with each other. She then photographs them and threatens to distribute the photo if the boys don't stop bullying her non-binary friend. Then the other witches turn into scary demons and the boys run out of the mine in their underwear like frightened schoolchildren.
Watching this sucked for me.
As a gay man, it just made my heart sink. It made me angry. It reminded me that even in 2018 the way I express romantic love is still a widespread object of ridicule. That being gay or engaging in a male on male sex act still results in a great deal of internalized shame and embarrassment, and those feelings can be weaponized against you and used to manipulate you. Watching this reminded me how painful my own time in high school was, how lonely, isolated and sometimes suicidal I felt during those years. It is easy for me to imagine the terror and panic I would have felt at the prospect of having my closeted sexuality used against me in high school.
Who the fuck thought this story line was a good idea? Seriously, Netflix?
High school is a deeply painful experience for a lot of people, but for queer folk, it can be an experience we barely survive. LGBTQ youth are 4 times more likely to try to kill themselves. Every year in Canada, an average of 500 LGBTQ youth succeed in taking their own lives.
In a later episode, Sabrina's Aunt read's one of the football players mind and discloses he is "in lust" with his fellow football playing friend. Its supposed to be light hearted and funny.
It didn't have to be this way Netflix. Sabrina could have gotten the boys naked by using spells to make them think they were getting down with sexy witches, but then instead of taking it to a homophobic place, you just go right to the scary demon stuff. That would have been fine. In fact, it would have even been good television. I mean, who doesn't love a good revenge plot?
The sort of homophobia that comes from your friends, from people who are trying to be your allies, can be the most painful to deal with. It hurts when your friends let you down, and the fact you care about their feelings and don't want to make them feel uncomfortable makes it harder to point out and deal with whats bothering you. Oppression and discrimination often manifests in subtle ways and are perpetuated unknowingly, by well meaning people with no intent to cause harm or damage.
Impact matters more than intent. A show trying to be an ally to the LGBTQ community shouldn't make gay dudes feel crappy while watching. Pulling a homophobic trick, even if it was to try and help your friend, is a lousy way to be an ally to LGBTQ youth in schools.
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