"Although seemingly benign, this discriminatory vision of the world is
pervasively potent from a very young age. Elmo and his Sesame Street
cohorts have taught us weill to discern 'which of these things is not like
the other?' Given that the voice of Elmo is in reality, that of a gay black
male. this kind of socialization is especially incriminating."
This is a quote from "What Matthew Shepard Would Tell Us: Gay and Lesbian Issues in Education." I find it interesting that Doug Risner accuses Sesame Street of teaching children to discriminate against others; I have always noticed the diversity present in the cast, and the show tends to be very pro-social and progressive in its content. I find it ironic that the passage is included in an article about discrimination based on sexuality, given that some people have accused Sesame Street of condoning homosexuality in Bert and Ernie's relationship. This assertion is expressed
here (start at "The lobby group...") and
here.
Pointing out differences is not discrimination by definition; it can also be done in the context of celebrating diversity, or in learning more about the world around us.