I grew up in a very different time.  I remember when the first television came into the house.  I didn’t find out that Rocky and Bullwinkle were in color until after I got married–when my husband and I bought our first color television set!  My children were raised with Sesame Street in its early days.  I still wonder about whether or not the very short segments contribute to ADD or ADHD, but since only one of my three children has the disorder, I tend to believe it is more genetic than Sesame Street related.  At any rate, I enjoyed Sesame Street and still watch it occasionally with my grandchildren.

On Tuesday the New York Daily News reported that there is an online campaign to have  lovable roommates Bert and Ernie get married. 

The article reports:

“More than 700 people have signed on to the petition, posted at change.org.

“”We are not asking that Sesame Street do anything crude or disrespectful,” reads the petition for the muppet merger. “It can be done in a tasteful way. Let us teach tolerance of those that are different.””

Sesame Street is a show designed for pre-schoolers.  They do not need to know or care about exactly what the relationship between Bert and Ernie is. 

The article reports some of the common sense shown by the creators of Sesame Street:

“But the producers of Sesame Street say Bert and Ernie’s relationship is purely platonic.

“”Bert and Ernie are best friends,” the non-profit Sesame Workshop said in a statement. “They were created to teach preschoolers that people can be good friends with those who are very different from themselves.

“”Even though the Sesame Street Muppets … possess many human traits and characteristics, they have no sexual orientation.””

The producers have it right.  I hope they are able to stand their ground.  Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on homosexual marriage, but small children do not need to be exposed to the controversy–they are children.  I like what the producers said about Bert and Ernie–they are there to teach that it’s okay to be friends with people who are different.  That is a really good message that does not need to be complicated with controversy.