One Million Moms on Thursday criticized
the Disney Channel's decision to feature a coming out gay storyline
in the second season of its tween series Andi Mack.
The storyline is a first for the Disney
Channel.
Andi Mack follows the lives of
13-year-old title character Andi (played by Peyton Elizabeth), her
family and her two best friends: Cyrus Goodman (Joshua Rush) and
Buffy Driscoll (Sofia Wylie). In the show's second season premiere,
which airs Friday, Cyrus confides his feelings for a boy to Buffy.
Christian conservative group One
Million Moms called the move “a huge mistake” in a petition
demanding Disney “cancel this controversial series immediately.”
“By choosing to abandon
family-friendly entertainment, Disney's inexplicable choice to move
toward more 'adult' fare may ultimately prove to be a huge mistake,”
the group wrote.
“The Disney Channel is deliberately
choosing to 'move forward' and promote adult content to children. By
choosing to move in the direction of more 'adult' stories and
content, the Disney Channel – and the entire Disney media empire –
may be choosing to sacrifice something far more precious…
children’s innocence,” One Million Moms added.
As of Thursday, 5,220 people had signed
the group's petition.