Big Bird Being Cancelled For Vaccine Post
Here's what Big Bird said that now has people wanting to see him cancelled.
This article is more than 2 years old
Johnny Depp recently warned the world that cancel culture could come for any celebrity at any time. It seems the actor was accurate, as the latest firestorm surrounds one of Jim Henson’s most famous muppets. That’s right, some ambitious people want to see Big Bird cancelled. The Sesame Street character participated in a CNN Town Hall on Saturday Morning. The special was titled The ABCs of Covid Vaccines. During the show, Big Bird and other Sesame Street characters were vaccinated to prevent illness from COVID-19. The initial episode didn’t draw the firestorm, it was Big Bird’s tweet that got the attention of politicians like Ted Cruz.
You can see the Tweet getting Big Bird cancelled below.
The town hall special episode featured Dr. Sanjay Gupta and anchor Erica Hill alongside the Sesame Street characters. Once it aired, Big Bird hopped on Twitter to say that while he experienced some minor side effects, the vaccine wasn’t a problem for the muppet. Ted Cruz, the American politician, then posted a reply tweet, stirring up a conversation on the topic of whether Big Bird should be cancelled for promoting government propaganda.
Joining in the debate, President Joe Biden also Tweeted, this time in support of Big Bird’s vaccination choice. Apparently, the current President does not believe that Big Bird should be cancelled, at least, not for this current choice.
To many, the attempt to get Big Bird cancelled may seem bizarre. To others, it’s just another day of political debate. This isn’t the first time Sesame Street has experienced a serious backlash, and it likely won’t be the last.
The recent inspiration for the town hall episode on vaccines came after the Center for Disease Control recommended children between the ages of five to eleven get vaccinated for COVID-19. As Big Bird mentioned in his tweet, this isn’t the first time that the muppet character has been vaccinated. In fact, he has talked about this on television in the past. In 1972, he took part in a segment called Don’t Wait, Vaccinate for the measles vaccine. As far as anyone knows, there was no attempt to get Big Bird cancelled at that time. The muppet joined the likes of other big names who’ve been publicly vaccinated in the past, including Elvis Presley in 1956 for the polio vaccine. He was shown being vaccinated on The Ed Sullivan Show.
Will Ted Cruz and politicians who share his beliefs be able to successfully get Big Bird cancelled? Probably not. It is true that the yellow anthropomorphic bird is part of PBS, which is partially government-funded. However, Ted Cruz would have a lot of politicians against him on this one, the current President included. He also has other political issues to tackle. However, that doesn’t mean he won’t come for the muppet character again. After all, Big Bird is a major public figure. Many of today’s American adults grew up with him. Suggesting that the character has taken a political side is something bound to gain attention. For the record, while Big Bird disclosed his own vaccination status, he did not weigh in on government mandates.
