Yikes!

People I like can be divided into two groups: a) those who enjoy and get Charles M. Schulz’s wonderful Peanuts comic strip; b) those fools who don’t. All of human life is in the artist and writer’s 17,897 comic strips.

In 1968 Schulz noticed the Civil Rights movement, the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., and read a letter from Los Angeles schoolteacher Harriet Glickman. She had a question for Schulz: would he include a black child in the Peanuts gang?

To which Schultz responded with the letter above, in what reads like an incredibly respectful and progressive manner.

He isn’t black and doesn’t want to offend the black community by doing them wrong in his portrayal, that would even work today as a reason.

Mrs. Glickman responded:

Dear Mr. Schulz,

I appreciate your taking the time to answer my letter about Negro children in Peanuts.

You present an interesting dilemma. I would like your permission to use your letter to show some Negro friends. Their responses as parents may prove useful to you in your thinking on this subject.

Sincerely,

Harriet Glickman

True to her word, Mrs Glickman showed the letter to others. Kenneth C. Kelly, one of Mrs. Glickman’s ‘Negro friends’, saw the missive and wrote to the artist:

Dear Mr. Schulz:

With regards to your correspondence with Mrs. Glickman on the subject of including Negro kids in the fabric of Peanuts, I’d like to express an opinion as a Negro father of two young boys. You mention a fear of being patronizing. Though I doubt that any Negro would view your efforts that way, I’d like to suggest that an accusation of being patronizing would be a small price to pay for the positive results that would accrue!

We have a situation in America in which racial enmity is constantly portrayed. The inclusion of a Negro supernumerary in some of the group scenes in Peanuts would do two important things. Firstly, it would ease my problem of having my kids seeing themselves pictured in the overall American scene. Secondly, it would suggest racial amity in a casual day-to-day sense.

I deliberately suggest a supernumerary role for a Negro character. The inclusion of a Negro in your occasional group scenes would quietly and unobtrusively set the stage for a principal character at a later date, should the basis for such a principal develop.

We have too long used Negro supernumeraries in such unhappy situations as a movie prison scene, while excluding Negro supernumeraries in quiet and normal scenes of people just living, loving, worrying, entering a hotel, the lobby of an office building, a downtown New York City street scene. There are insidious negative effects in these practices of the movie industry, TV industry, magazine publishing, and syndicated cartoons.

Sincerely,

KCK

Schulz sent Mrs. Glickman a personal note: 

Franklin was in the gang.

Opening bit till it gets to the letters is mine, most of the rest comes from this article

I have a hot pink Nintendo DS that I’ve had since like, 2015? 2015? And anyways I hadn’t used it since 2015 for one reason and one reason only:

MY LIL SISTER. CLOGGED THE CHARGER WITH HECKIN LUCKY CHARM MARSHMALLOWS

AND WE NEVER GOT A NEW CHARGER

Listen this is so wildly self indulgent but I was thinking about this today and sure enough it wanted to be written down

Books

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood – a harrowing dystopian look at why reproductive rights are women’s rights. Atwood might actually be God, the verdict’s not out yet

The Power by Naomi Alderman – probably best on the heels of Handmaid’s Tale, after which you’ll be thinking fuck men, this book reminds you gently that no, fuck the abuse of power, it’s just that women have had fewer opportunities for that (until…) I would have loved this book solely for the change in the newscaster dynamic tbh

The Protector of the Small series by Tamora Pierce (link to first in quartet) – this is a young adult fantasy series about the first girl openly training to be a knight. Reminds us that to be a strong woman you have to both overcome prejudice and put in the work. Kel has been so important to me ever since I was ten and cut all my hair off and pedaled around the neighborhood with a plastic lightsaber pretending to joust

Movies

Mona Lisa Smile – this doesn’t end at all the way you think it will, for any character, and yet it’s the perfect ending. This has been my favorite movie for like 10+ years honestly

Ever After – Cinderella retelling that gives the princess agency. Don’t lie to yourself, you need this in your life. Also Leonardo da Vinci is the fairy godmother; don’t pretend that isn’t peak art

TV

Fleabag (Amazon Prime) – the lead is extremely warped and yet extremely relatable. Watching this feels like getting permission to be hugely flawed honestly. Mind the warnings.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Hulu) – you do not have to renounce any aspect of femininity. You can do your makeup and paint your nails and go out and slay monsters. Who needs girl superheroes when we have Buffy honestly?

Theater

Wicked – name me one other piece of media this celebrated where the centerpiece is the friendship between two women. I’ll wait. You can’t

A Doll’s House – “Before all else you are a wife and a mother!” “Before all else I am a human being!” This wrecked 19th century Europe for a reason

Music

Short Skirt Long Jacket by Cake – don’t we all strive to be a girl with a mind like a diamond

The Man by Taylor Swift – listen this is a bop

Run the World (Girls) by Beyonce – did you think I wouldn’t include this? You were wrong

tumblr disclaimer: All of these, like any media, could probably be claimed to be problematic in some way honestly. But I think they’ve all massively impacted how I think about feminism.

“National Geographic called me and asked me to write the feminist facts about how The Lion King gets lion pride dynamics all wrong. I happily complied. Lions are matrilineal!! 

When I contacted Craig Packer, one of the world’s leading lion researchers, to talk  about this story he was IMMEDIATELY AVAILABLE. He Skyped me almost instantly from a camp in Kenya and said he’s been waiting for someone to ask him this question since the original film came out.

Anyway, if The Lion King were real, Nala would be the star, Sarabi would be holding her up saying everything the light touches is our kingdom, Simba would have left and never come back, and when Nala got old enough Sarabi would have carved out a territory for her to rule.”

- Erin Biba‏ 

In real life, Simba’s mom would be running the pride

“Reasons men gave for lecturing me on lion pride social structure and telling me one of the world’s leading lion researchers is wrong (I am not kidding these are real): -Watched The Lion King DVD extras -Read a textbook 25 years ago -Has been to the zoo -Everyone just knows

If you ever wondered what it’s like to be a woman that communicates science, this is what it’s like. Any expertise you or your sources may have gained over decades of hard work are null and void because someone watched a DVD extra 25 years ago.”

Perhaps someone beat me to it, but here are ALL of the featured vines, in order of appearance [EDIT: now available as a YouTube playlist!]:

I won’t hesitate bitch

Hi my name is Tre and I have a basketball game tomorrow

Whaddup, I’m Jared I’m 19 and I never fucking learned how 2 read

Kermit the Frog jumps off building

Fr e sh a voca do

back at it again at Krispy Kreme

There is only one thing worse than a rapist

Club Jam (yes a really good book)

At least the taco was free

I am the Sand Guardian, guardian of the sand

Grandma loves ping pong too much

If your name is Junior

Welcome to Target

I’m just cooking pizza

Cole Sprouse dress-up game

On all levels except physical, I am a Wolf

Kid hits ceiling of gym with rope (breaking free)

Kid smacked by fly swatter

Fuck it up Kenneth (my boy going to school)

Um I’m not finished (Tyler the Creator)

WE’RE BREAKING FREE

SAIL

I’m Squidward

So I’m sitting there, barbecue sauce on my tiddies

So no head? (breaking skateboard)

Actually, Megan (I can’t sit anywhere)

No off topic questions (Chris Christie)

What the fuck, Richard

Drop it like it’s hot (its just luke)

Bored as shiiiiii

Liberian accent (plasma globe)

New haircut (Parker Kit Hill)

Summertime sadness (chicken)

More like hurricane TORTILLA

I got an a-bor-tion

All Around the World (TheJasminator)

When there’s a cutie next to you at a red light

Snake licks lollipop

Accept yourself, love yourself

Be whatever you wanna be

Don’t touch Zac’s music (LENARR)

Whoever threw that paper, your mom’s a ho

Can I please get a waffle?

Turn off the flash you fucking moron (Star Wars)

Ebony Jenkins (shut up!)

Kevin, watch the light dude

Horse meditation

A girl a dream & a clothing hanger

Is that a weed? (911 microwave)

Helium balloons (floating car)

Fireplace fairy

I’m your freestyle dance teacher

I can’t believe you’ve done this

Which way the Quiznos is

Impossible paper toss shot

Hemtube (dancing with cat)

I nurture my skin (Shaq)

Why are you running

Happy birthday?

Thicker than a bowl of oatmeal (courtroom)

Farkle falling

Fuck you (soda machine)

Squash banana (the branch I was holding broke)

Take On Me

And now my sock is wet (water gun)

All I ever wanted was some motherfuckin guala

When there’s too much drama at school

Two bros chillin in the Hot Tub

What’s your name? (ouija board)

Chillary Clinton (chillin in Cedar Rapids)

Guy drops slurpee (7-Eleven)

Girl scared of convertible car

Guy who is self-conscious about his lisp (Rice Krispies Treats)

Would you like the spider on your hand?

Shopping cart crash

We actually have the chip reader now

I’M A GIRAFFE

Dinner with Zayn Malik (Chihuahua eating spaghetti)

háblales bonito,

quiérelas mucho

y verás como crecen.