The Macy’s Day Parade has had a tradition of showcasing upcoming or circulating Broadway Shows. In the parade for 2023, the scheduled showcases are from & Juliet and Shucked. These performances feature nonbinary performers in major roles. These performers are Justin David Sullivan, who uses all pronouns, and Alex Newell, who also uses all pronouns. Sullivan is featured in & Juliet as May, the close friend of the leading lady, while Newell is playing the role of Lulu, the main actress’s cousin.
While many of us love the representation, fundamentalist Christian group The American Family Association’s (AFA) One Million Moms does not. They organized a petition that posits that these nonbinary performers are a danger to children. Currently, this online petition has upwards of 17,000 signatures. Saying the parade is having a “transgender extravaganza” and are pushing a “liberal LGBTQ+ agenda,” this association purports to be an organization in defense of children’s safety, something that they believe the LGBTQ+ community is actively threatening by our existence alone.
The AFA is a fundamentalist Christian organization that also opposes most forms of free thought that do not follow traditional Christian ideals. Among the things they oppose are LGBTQ+ freedom and expression, sexual freedom, and abortion. Fundamentalist Christian values often involve the nuclear family, a focus on patriarchy, and conservatism. There is a lot of misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia in fundamentalist Christian spaces, and groups such as the AFA perform boycotts and other forms of protestation in order to spread their close-minded views to those who do not share their beliefs.
In the AFA’s petition, they said that they “cannot trust Macy’s stores” due to the parade featuring more than one LGBTQ+ artist. In 2021, the Macy’s Day Parade featured Kim Petras. Contrarty to the AMA’s beliefs, these performers are not trying to indoctrinate anyone’s children. They are just working their jobs, like everyone else.
