Row as trans group doctors Mr Men series
A CONTROVERSIAL pressure group is under fire for using the Mr Men and Little Miss books to promote transgender rights.
Mermaids posted doctored images of the beloved children’s characters including ‘Little Mx Trans and Fabulous’ and ‘Little Miss Supports Trans Rights’.
Other pictures on Twitter, using the instantly recognisable art of the 50-yearold series, showed ‘Little Mr Protect Trans Youth’ and ‘Little Mx Trans Women Belong in Sports’. The charity asked its followers ‘which Little Miss Mermaids edition are you?’, joining in the craze of social media users making up titles for Little Miss characters that sum up their personalities.
But hundreds of people said it was inappropriate for the charity to use Mr Men characters – shown in books and cartoons aimed at pre-schoolers – to promote its views on gender. Mermaids campaigns for children to receive gender reassignment treatment. It follows claims by equality lobby group, Stonewall, that children as young as two can be transgender.
Former Downing Street aide Nikki da Costa said: ‘Last week we had Stonewall advocate that two-year-olds can be transgender. Now we have Mermaids co-opting Mr Men and Little Miss typically aimed at two to six-year-olds. What message does this send about preserving the space for children to be children?’ James Esses, co-founder of Thoughtful Therapists, said: ‘To push divisive ideology onto the youngest of children by using appealing imagery is extremely dangerous.’
Created by Roger Hargreaves, the Mr Men and Little Miss brands are now owned by a subsidiary of Sanrio, the Japanese firm behind Hello Kitty. Sanrio and Mermaids have not made any comment.