I have laughed at many, many jokes from The Onion. I’m a fan of sarcasm and speak the language fluently.
Let me say I caught like 15 minutes of the Oscar red carpet as I tossed balloons with the frog princess. I did manage to catch a glimpse at Quvenzhané Wallis (best actress nominee) and her mom on the red carpet. She seemed like an excited 9 year old. Poised but still 9.
Photo: Getty Images
I didn’t watch the Oscars. Too much to do and besides, reading the Tweets is much more fun. I’ll be honest. That first hour I was watching OWN and taking notes on Life Class. So imagine my shock when I saw this:
I felt queasy when I read it. For a lot of reasons but mostly because I don’t care how sarcastic you are and how much bullshit you put out there, saying this about a 9 year old is NOT right. She’s 9. And now you get to revel in whatever press you’ll get out of this and be retweeted and written about at nauseum.
It took a lot of thinking for me to post this because I don’t wish to give them any additional press but as a parent I have to say that this crossed the line. You’re calling a 9-year old a cunt. Really?!
There’s nowhere in any book where this is okay. I hope that Quvenzhané Wallis does not read that but unfortunately with the way that news travels, I’m sure some reporter will ask her how it feels to be thought of as a cunt. Because that’s just how we roll these days.
The Onion lost a follower today. It probably won’t matter in the long run. They have nearly 5 million followers so, what’s losing one here and there, right?
Let’s talk. I’m hoping it’s just me being a complete Mami right now and going mama bear on someone but, this sick feeling in my stomach is not going away. Does anyone else have a sinking feeling when you read these words? Like if this one thing is okay, what else will be acceptable? Or am I reading too much into this?
They’ve lost many followers because of it, myself included. I enjoy satire: this is not satire. It’s disgusting, sexist, and seriously, she’s NINE! It’s never alright to call someone that, but a nine year old? I don’t understand what they were thinking.
Twitter: mymamihood
says:
I hear they deleted the Tweet. And didn’t bother to apologize. People are saying it’s satire and doesn’t matter but I disagree. She’s 9. Bottom line. You don’t say that about a child. Thanks for stopping by.
I love The Onion but I dont like this. And not because its offensive, moreso because its not funny. I have a pretty healthy sense of humor but this just comes off as tasteless.
Twitter: mymamihood
says:
Agreed about it not being funny. Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Twitter: GrlRedBalloon
says:
I don’t think you’re reading too much into this at all. It’s disgusting that a 9 year old girl would be called a cunt, but I think it’s also disgusting that we’ve accepted this as humor at all. Calling ANY female a cunt shouldn’t be a joke. It’s misogynistic, just another way to oppress women. I can only hope this opens up a dialogue about sexism. Maybe one good thing could come out of this awful experience. (I agree too that someone will probably ask her about it, but I’d hope, hope, hope that no one would. She’s 9 years old for god’s sake!)
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Twitter: mymamihood
says:
We will see what happens. And like you, I keep saying that line over and over again “she’s 9!”. I’m still not entirely sure I can verbalize how this made me feel and the ripples behind those words. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
I missed the onion tweet because they deleted it and went to google to see what the issue was. Thank you for blogging this. I am fighting back tears as I type. No woman should ever be called this word. Ever. Let alone a poor little girl who should have this day as a memory she holds dear in her heart for a lifetime.
This is purely outrageous. I have no words.
Twitter: mymamihood
says:
You’re welcome. I’m still in a bit of shock over it. No words. I mean, she’s 9. Satire is one thing but I just think this is taking it too far. Heard they deleted the tweet and did not address it at all. No confirmation on that since I unfollowed though.
You may not like it.
You may be offended by it.
You may not think it’s funny.
But it is satire and pretty spot on.
Twitter: yosoymamipr
says:
What is your definition of satire? Because I don’t get it.
Zelma @ YoSoyMami.com recently posted..Sorteo de una Pulsera de Kivelly Baby para tu Niña
Twitter: mymamihood
says:
Dainla, thanks for commenting. Satire is one thing but I just think kids are off limits. My opinion but I appreciate you sharing yours here.
Twitter: clubdediosas
says:
You clearly don’t have children.
Yadira recently posted..Bloguera en la mira: The Hermosas
Exactly what I was thinking Yadira.
Natalie recently posted..Red Onions: How To Regrow Red Onions and Plant Onion Sets
I totally agree with . Come on she is 9. We have so lost it as a society. People will use anything to go viral … Get a response or shock. Surprised no .. Sickened yes ! Don’t follow @theonion and have no intention of.
The way I see it…they were trying to satirize the unending vitriol on Twitter during the Oscars. Thats the only way I can rationalize the thought process behind the tweet. I’m not defending it, but they’re usually not fans of taking the easy, shocking way to get a laugh without having a deeper idea behind it.
If you were keeping tabs on tweets during the show like I was, you were inundated with negativity from every corner of the world. Everyone seemed to have something bad to say about EVERYTHING – from how people looked to how people spoke to the sexual orientation of the presenters and even the live sound mix. Oddly enough, most of the complaints were about how awful the Oscars telecast was even though they were still spending their Sunday nights watching it. The vile and seemingly limitless hatred being spewed was annoying after a while.
Maybe they struck a nerve, but at the same time what made it okay for everyone else to spew such awful shit about everyone else the rest of the time? You guys are right, it’s NOT right to call a 9-year old a cunt. But it’s not right to call Anne Hathaway one either, or Seth Macfarlane, or Oscar-winning editor William Goldenberg. When you break it down to the actual issue at hand, it really says something about our anonymity-driven internet culture where anyone can say anything about anyone with no immediate social consequences (like a smack to the face or a stern look in the eye).
Twitter: mymamihood
says:
You know what Mike, you’re right. Absolutely. There was a lot of negativity. I guess that’s why I decided not to watch though I will say I made a comment about a very small commentator making everyone look like giants. Makes me want to go back and look through my own Tweets and posts.
I agree that the issue at hand is that anonymity and negative comments should not be allowed. Regardless of who they’re directed towards. You’ve given me more to think about tonight. Will definitely have to do a follow up post. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts.
I was a little pissed at the song at the end of the song, that pretty much referred to her as a “loser” and kind of making fun of the fact that she lost. But a “cunt” seriously? That is distasteful and down right disrespectful. I was never a fan and you can bet your bottom dollar, I would NEVER be.
Twitter: clubdediosas
says:
I must say the show was horrible. But to say these nasty words to this girl is worst. Unbelievable and not acceptable.
Yadira recently posted..Regalos elegantes para tu bebe o niño de Kivelli Baby – sorteo
Twitter: consaborakafe
says:
You are not reading too much into this. Mami or not this type of behavior/language is NOT acceptable. It’s very sad but this is what the world has become.
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Twitter: dianalimongi
says:
OH. MY. GOD. i can’t explain how disgusted I am… i can’t even remember if i follow them, but i am going to make sure everyone knows about this … this person should be fired, it is absolutely disgusting.
I’m absolutely appalled. This crosses the line from satire to sick.
Twitter: DanielleSmithTV
says:
To say I am horrified would be an incredible understatement. She is NINE. I don’t care if she was throwing the mother of all tantrums in the center of the Red Carpet – the tweet is unacceptable. Yes, they’ve taken the tweet down and as of this moment, they haven’t apologized…. unacceptable.
Twitter: JulieLCompton
says:
Sili, I agree with you. Satire it may be — I didn’t watch the Oscars or follow what was happening on social media, so I can’t say — but even if it is, there’s a little thing people used to exercise called judgment, and sadly, judgment is lacking in the world nowadays. It seems the primary goal of too many people is to shock others in order to get the most attention possible (not sure why attention is the end goal for so many). I suppose it’s always been this way for some, but our connected world makes it hard to ignore. Even worse, because anything goes, nothing is too shocking anymore, and people behave in despicable ways just to up the ante. You wonder if the person who posted this (and also those who retweeted and favorited!) stopped for even a moment and asked him/herself if the attention and laughs and whatever else he got from it was worth lowering himself to that level. Probably not. Self-reflection isn’t too popular these days, either.
Julie Compton recently posted..Hello World
You are absolutely right – that tweet is horrifying. I also know how difficult it is to write comedy. Nine out of 10 jokes crash and burn — which is why those toiling in the writers’ room need to feel comfortable sharing the stinkers in search of the joke that will hit. I think the tweeter forgot he (I’m assuming it was a he) wasn’t in the room. I think that’s the case with all of these corporate tweeters who get in trouble by tweeting out something offensive — they forget that they are sharing with a diverse audience who isn’t going to get the “joke.”
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Disgusting. Won’t read anything from their site again. Thanks for the awareness. Xo
There’s a really big, fat line between what you can say about adults versus what you can say about children. Kids are just off limits when you’re speaking so offensively. The remark was sexist and appalling….it’s also sad that a full grown man would think a comment like that about a 9 year old would think that it was funny and/or acceptable. It was in extremely poor taste.
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The Onion has posted an apology but I say it’s too late. The utterly offensive comment should not have been tweeted at all. They say that the person or persons responsible will be disciplined as they should. Satire is one thing but crude and offensive comments about a child are two totally different things.