Over recent years, Twitter has become a great platform for activists aiming to bring about change and challenge social and political injustices. It has been monumental in educating, especially younger people, on movements for feminism and creating hashtags such as #blacklivesmatter.
Yesterday I noticed #GiveElsaAGirlfriend trending on twitter and was immediately intrigued. The hashtag was started by teen feminist Alexis Moncada (aka @lexi4prez).
This was the tweet that started it off.
I reached out to her to ask her intentions and what she hoped the movement would achieve. She told me,
'I really thought that giving young girls a Disney princess with a love interest other than a boy could open up their minds. If we can watch girls fall in love with boys, falling in love with a girl shouldn't be any different. I know for a fact if I would have been able to see that when I was younger I wouldn't have felt so different and alone. It would open up the conversation in the household, normalize same sex relationships, and would be great exposure for children'
Her tweet sparked a huge amount of interest and support, but predictably some people were not so enthusiastic. Some were arguing that it was unfair to expose kids or that it could 'confuse' them. What they weren't seeming to understand is that having an LGBT+ Disney character, being that it is the most popular franchise for children's movies, would help kids be more accepting and also LGBT+ kids feel more comfortable and confident in themselves knowing they have a character they can relate to.
Frozen has already been progressive as the story wasn't the typical Disney plot, princess falling in love with prince, it focused on female power and the bond between sisters. It also starred Jonathan Groff, Disney's first openly gay actor.
I can think of no better character than Elsa for Disney to introduce as their first, of hopefully many, LGBT+ main characters. Her journey of accepting her powers is already the perfect metaphor for embracing herself and her sexuality. For queer kids to feel represented and safe through a beloved character could shape a future of a more accepting, loving generation.
So, Disney! #GiveElsaAGirlfriend! Love is an open door, after all.
Huge thank you to Alexis for creating this movement and contributing the article.
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