Pepe Le Pew, the French cartoon skunk whose amorous attentions have chased generations of women, was the target of the New York Times.
Columnist Charles M. Blow says in a tweet today that the Looney Tunes character “added to the rape culture”.
“The RW blogs are crazy because I said that Pepe Le Pew added to the rape culture. We will see. 1. He grabs / kisses a girl / stranger, repeatedly, without consent and against her will. 2. She tries very hard to get away from him, but he doesn’t let go. 3. It locks the door to prevent it from escaping. “It’s true … Penelope Pussycat was always in Pepe’s clutches.
Looney Tunes had already stopped showing rifles in his updated portraits of Elmer Fudd.
Blow previously took over Dr. Seuss in a op-ed entitled “Six Seuss Books Bore a Bias”. He argued that early exposure to negative images shapes perceptions. He mentioned Speedy Gonzales, the Mexican rat cartoon, as one of those negatives.
Naturally, there were mixed feelings on the line about Blow’s opinion. But he is not alone in his perception. Comedian Dave Chappelle pointed out the same thing in a classic routine:
RW blogs are crazy because I said that Pepe Le Pew added to the rape culture. We will see.
1. He grabs / kisses a girl / stranger, repeatedly, without consent and against her will.
2. She struggles hard to get away from him, but he doesn’t let go
3. It locks a door to prevent it from escaping. pic.twitter.com/CbLCldLwvR– Charles M. Blow (@CharlesMBlow) March 6, 2021
Who had “Pepe Le Pew being canceled for being a rapist” on his 2021 Bingo card? pic.twitter.com/apggrcANiZ
– NUFF (@nuffsaidny) March 6, 2021
If the NY Times says Pepe Le Pew adds to the rape culture, what will they say about the sequel Coming 2 America, where the whole plot is based on the character of Leslie Jones, who raped Prince Akeem?
– Neanderthal Scholar Poso (@JackPosobiec) March 6, 2021