In a recent post, I shared my discovery of Mickey Mouse's whiteness.
From there, I started to wonder about the gender differences between Mickey and Minnie Mouse.
I started to think about her name, Minnie. Calling a female character "mini" and then giving her a supporting versus a lead role to my mind is unfair and sexist.
And this inequity can be found in many other cartoons as well. Smurfs is a great example of this. Each character is named after his talent or special characteristic. For example, Brainy Smurf is very smart. However, Smurfette, the first female smurf, has a name that refers to her as less than, like Minnie. Is that her talent? Why is the first female smurf's name diminutive? Boys and girls deserve to see more equity in their cartoons as well as in their formative years. And there is some good work being done to help create more balance in children's media.
Please check out www.seejane.com for more information.
Below, please meet Jane.
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