Why We Need Trans Representation in Children’s Shows
Introduction
Thanks to Elon Musk, transgender representation is in the spotlight again. In an era of both accelerating acceptance of and unprecedented legislative attacks on trans people, it is vital that the public sees accurate portrayals of trans people—and how to behave around them—and for transgender youth and adults to see hopeful role models in the media.
Representation is Truth
Everybody who exists in real life deserves to see themselves reflected in fiction. That includes trans people, people of color—every group that exists.
Trans people deserve the dignity of accurate and positive representation. To not be shown as plot twist deceivers, titillating degenerates, or sexual predators. Trans people deserve to be portrayed in human stories. To have lives and personalities other than our genders. And, once in a while, to be main characters. Trans people are neighbors, not villains. It's not a tragedy to be trans, it's just life.
And being trans is not contagious. Defying gender norms, loving people with similar sex characteristics, physically transitioning... gay and trans people do these things even in extremely hostile societies because they must. Because it becomes unbearable to repress one’s innate, authentic self. "Born this way" is an important story to tell, because it reassures people that their kids can't catch being trans or gay.
To accept trans people, society must understand them. To understand trans people, they must be represented accurately and positively in the media.
Representation Matters
"Every trans person carries within themselves a history of trans representation."
-- Jen Richards, Disclosure (2020)
Positive representation is important for the mental health and well-being of trans people. Everybody wants to see themselves on TV, but to only see narratives of villainy, marginalization, and suffering? "Exposure to negative and stigmatizing messages in the media is found to be associated with exacerbated symptoms of anxiety, depression, and PTSD in trans people". Good role models and modeled social acceptance give trans people, especially children, hope that they can become valued members of society.
And it's important in the battle for equal rights. Gay visibility—especially within families—was an important step towards gay acceptance and gay rights. Most extended families have somebody who is gay (~10% of people), but most families do not have a trans person (under 1% of the population). GLAAD’s research claims that 78% of non-LGBTQ adults do not (knowingly) know a trans person. Their impressions of trans people – and so the policies they support – come entirely from the media. Cis people learn norms of how to behave around trans people from media, so it is vital not just to have well-written trans characters, but accepting cis characters as well.
One look at the characters popular in the trans community shows they are starving for decent representation. Many trans icons are only trans allegorically, in fanon, or in retcons. Instead of a world where there are dozens of complex and well-written trans characters in every medium, trans people tolerate problematic scraps.
And that’s too much for conservatives.
Conservatives Want to Censor Trans Truth
"Free speech absolutist" Elon Musk recently declared war on Netflix over an obscure (and cancelled) animated show from 2023, Dead End: Paranormal Park, about two lovable kids who fight demons… one of whom happens to be trans. This article shows the clip they're so outraged by.
Perhaps buoyed by the success of the Disney boycotts (which lost them $6 billion in market capitalization) that helped restore Jimmy Kimmel to the air, Musk urged his millions of social media followers to cancel their Netflix subscriptions.
After Musk’s campaign, Netflix saw an even bigger drop in market capitalization of $15 billion. Netflix has not taken any action… yet. But the success of the Kimmel campaign and the ruthlessness with which Netflix cancels shows make this a move to take seriously. It's a lesson that progressives aren't the only ones who can exert economic pressure.
Musk's boycott of Netflix over a positive trans character is just the latest attack in a long campaign of censorship of positive trans stories, specifically in kid’s media. Disney has complied in recent years - they refused to air a finished episode about a trans girl struggling in sports , cut a transgender storyline from an episode in Pixar's Win or Lose, and almost scrapped Nimona (2023) . Netflix itself cancelled Dead End: Paranormal Park’s planned third season, which would have concluded the story, in spite of awards and favorable viewership numbers. There is a sense among fans and some initial informal research to suggest that shows with queer representation get cancelled more often, disproportionate to their popularity or critical acclaim.
Trans Hatred is Built on Lies
Public support for trans people is not particularly high and has gone down in recent years.
⅔ of Americans want to restrict trans athletes to compete with their assigned sex
½ of Americans support bathroom bans
½ of Americans support banning gender-affirming care for minors and gender identity education in elementary schools
Almost ⅘ of Americans oppose requiring health insurance to cover gender-affirming care
Public opinion matters. Stereotypes like "man in a dress" and "confused girl" motivate anti-trans prejudice, and ultimately discriminatory opinions and legislation. "Kamala Harris is for they/them" wouldn't have been such an effective ad if there wasn't widespread discomfort with trans people. Since the 2024 election, there has been a fierce struggle within the Democratic party on whether to throw trans people to the wolves. In the fight over the government shutdown, Trump himself insisted on anti-trans riders to the federal budget. We will see whether congressional Democrats stand strong or compromise away the childhoods and futures of trans children at the first opportunity.
What are these beliefs based on? How many of the people who believe these things have (knowingly) met a trans person?
The "Transing" Conservatives Fear
The anti-trans campaign is based on two beliefs:
It is bad to be transgender.
Transgender people can spread it.
Conservatives fear that their kids will come out as trans, defy gender roles, and seek physical transition - that those are bad either morally or because it will mean a ruined life. And they fear that it's because their kid saw a functioning and sympathetic trans person on TV. (Or because a teacher asked for pronouns. Or because their friends at school accept gender diversity.) This is why they censor—they are scared of anybody having the option to view positive representation.
These beliefs are why it's essential to communicate:
Trans people are people.
Trans people are born this way.
Conclusion
The lack of accurate representation leaves people who don’t know a trans person in the dark, and transphobes tell false and dehumanizing stories under the cover of that darkness. Until that changes, Republicans will use trans people as scapegoats and bait Democrats to sell them out.
Representation is a vital practice of freedom of speech. It’s giving a misunderstood minority a platform to tell their own stories, and parents and children the option of listening to them. We need stories that reflect the reality: LGBTQ+ people are people, valued members of society, with friends, families, and lives. Trans people need to sometimes be complex main characters whose stories are told to completion.
What You Can Do
Let Netflix know that you support positive LGBTQ+ representation, including in children’s content. See our Call to Action for contact information and a script.
Tell Netflix: Don't Bow to Bullies! Keep Telling Diverse Stories
If this article made you curious, watch these titles on Netflix. (While you still can!)
Disclosure (2020). A documentary deep dive on transgender representation in film and TV.
Nimona (2023). The first commoner knight gets framed for murder, and teams up with a rebellious shapeshifter to clear his name.
Dead End: Paranormal Park (2023). A trans boy and autistic girl fight demons.