Do you watch the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade? What’s your favorite part? The corny commentators? The baton twirlers? The teeny-bop music?
Or ... all those giant sexist balloons?
You see, Mr. Potato Head isn’t just a fun character and an amusing part of the traditional holiday festivity. He’s an inflatable symbol of the oppression of little girls everywhere.
On November 10 of this year, Lynnette Long, president of Equal Visibility Everywhere—a not-for-profit charmingly acronymed EVE—published a blog on the astounding under-representation of female characters among the Macy’s parade balloons. For a few key feminists, despite the holiday, it was a call to action.
In the 84-year, 129-character history of the parade, only 10 female characters have ever sailed down the avenues. “Parade balloons are not a trivial issue,” said Long. “Every year millions of young girls eagerly attend Macy’s and other parades, only to look up and see nothing but male characters float by.” Long concluded with a latent call for action: “Hopefully, one day, the parade skies of the United States will be filled with an equal number of male and female characters.”
To which I say ... really? This is what we’ve come to? Counting floating balloon characters to make sure it all comes out even? Because little girls will feel put down and left out if there aren’t an equal number of male and female giant balloons in the Macy’s parade?
As the linked article suggests, the balloon characters reflect what’s currently popular in kids’ entertainment, so this is more about a lack of female characters marketed to children than it is about Macy’s discriminating against our daughters.
We watched some of the parade here, and I must admit that I did not notice a lack of female balloon characters. Of greater concern to me was the giant billboard advertisement featuring a woman wearing only a bra that made up the background for many of the camera shots. I don’t like the message that kind of sexual imagery sends to my kids.
But I suppose I am the only feminist blogging about that affront to our daughters today.
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Thank you! I agree that this is so ridiculous, it’s not even funny. I’m also glad that you mentioned the disgusting billboard that made up the background for most of the parade. I wonder how much Victoria’s Secret paid to have their advertisement become a centerpiece during the Macy’s parade?
I did notice a distinct lack of humans represented in balloon form. Clearly Macy’s is also speciest.
@Paige—the speciest comment is EXACTLY what I was thinking lol. great minds think alike :)
As a mom of 7 girls, I’m really okay with all of this as I forbid watching the whole thing if Bratz dolls came down the lane as balloons or even a huge Barbie doll. So much to worry about when it comes to my girls but these balloons aren’t it!
Well, obviously this parade is not only sexist and speciest, it’s clearly an attempt to have potatoes take over the government, since we all know that parade balloons are what we base our political and personal views on. Personally, I’m disappointed that no one seems to take this incredibly important issue seriously—we should have a committee for every parade to make certain that everything is perfectly even, fair, and 100% equal, and then our children will not only be getting unbiased views, they will also be bored to tears by the liberal, ultra-feminist kool-aid being force fed to them.
I say that the Mr. Potato Head balloon is a sign of statism. Clearly the Macy’s parade officials prefer Idaho over all the rest of the states.
“Of greater concern to me was the giant billboard advertisement featuring a woman wearing only a bra that made up the background for many of the camera shots.”
I totally agree!!!
Mr Potato Head is sexist? Surely he’s just a ‘common-tater’ Sorry for the British joke ;o)
You’re not the only one who noticed the larger-than-life brassiere looking down on all those male balloons… I contemplated turning the parade off because I find VS so unbelievably tasteless. Of course, I also had to gag at the act with some female performer singing, “Don’t hate me because I’m beautiful/I’m cuter than the girl that’s witcha…”—that just about ruined the parade for me.
BTW, I’m wondering if they paid any attention to the number of female vs. male performers, which likely included more females… And of course, no one’s talking about the actual performances…
That busty billboard was driving me crazy!!
What about Hello Kitty? She’s a female, and a cute one at that!
I have watched at least part of the Macy’s Parade every year for longer than I can remember and that’s 48 years now.
There is a Ms. Potato Head, but alas the original was male so that’s what they used. (And who HASN’T played with him/her at one point).
My favorite part is the Broadway shows (well, the traditional ones that have stood the test of time like “Annie” and “Fiddler on the Roof”) because I will probably never see one in person.
And I like the high school marching bands.
PS-I like Hello Kitty (a feline lover at heart)...but what about Strawberry Shortcake and Holly Hobby? And Raggedy Ann and Andy?
The Rose Parade is much more beautiful though.
And NO football in this household!
I did not spoil my Thanksgiving Day watching “fake potatoes”, (I enjoyed real mashed potatoes!) for my Thanksgiving dinner!)OR indecent bill board) of women who want to have humankind respect them yet they expose and degrade their bodies in such a way that offends those who consider their bodies the “Temple of the Holy Spirit”.
I turned to my favorite FOX NEWS channel, who did show the parade here and there, but did not dwell on the obcene. Fox show-cased the many ways people were Thankful, what people were doing to show gratitude, etc…
The parade to me only showed the MATERIALISTIC side of what society has become, when GOD is left out of the picture.
It is good to state what is wrong with this event I suppose.
It is better to remember what happened next year this time and be determined not to watch or waste time on this complete rubbish/refuse.
Take some time to be with your family, and with the TV turned off.
Frankly, I am glad I did not squander this precious time, God’s gift, this year.
Happy Advent to All!
I haven’t watched the parade in sometime. Interesting how much worse things have become. I stopped watching because the coverage of the parade was horrible. My question is, are these people for real? Do they seriously think that a lack of female balloons will impact little girls so dramatically? I think little girls are more oppressed by the double standards they are fed. You’re wonderful and beautiful the way you are is fed to them in their ears but their eyes are fed that they only have value and worth if they are skinny, skantily clad, and sexually active. Be anything you want to be when you grow up but don’t you dare be a committed stay at home Mom who puts their family needs first. Wake up world! The feminist movement has done more to degrade and objectify women than the any other movement in the world.
@LRoy—I’m a Tournament of Roses Parade fan myself—a much better display of God’s beauty in nature coupled with God-given talent & creativity!
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