Dear editor,
Baby It’s Cold Outside won the Oscar for Best Original Song in 1949, and instantly became a Christmas favourite. Now its lyrics have been declared persona non grata by the #MeToo Movement, and disc jockeys at many radio stations across the US, Canada and further afield will not be playing it this year.
So many of us support of the brave women who exposed the likes of Harvey Weinstein for his use of Hollywood’s “casting couch”, and of many other women who followed suit to stop abuse and intimidation in their own work environment. Yet somehow, to pick on this Christmas classic gives raise to the question asked when so many MeToo cases first came into play, namely : Where does all this political correctness end?
It’s also grossly unfair to pick on one song over another, so here’s a quick scan of likely violators of Yuletide political correctness.
Obviously, there’s White Christmas, with its openly racist title, enough said.
Deck The Halls has the chorus Fa La La La, La La La that everybody sings lustily without ever bothering to check what it means; could it be an innuendo that ties in with the “gay apparel” line in the same song, thus mocking the LGBTQ community?
Hard to avoid offending some group or the other with lyrics like Mix and a-mingle in the jingling feet from another Christmas dance favourite called Jingle Bell Rock; so much potential for a ban there.
The People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA ) should definitely be offended by an animal’s abnormality being exploited by Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer.
Andy Williams may be rolling in his grave right now to think that his iconic It’s the most wonderful time of the year may be interpreted as an ode to cold climes that ignores the glory of summer, to the detriment of environmentalists and climate change experts who lurk in every shadow these days.
These are but a few examples off the top of my head, tongue firmly planted in cheek of course, but there must be so many more offending lines in Christmas songs, as producing them has turned into an industry of its own. This MeToo radio ban definitely seems to be overstepping the mark of common sense, in an era where radio stations freely play songs with violent and sexually-charged rap lyrics year round. Worst of all, it may give encouragement to those opposing commentators who love to label feminists with the derogatory term “feminazis.”
Bernie Smith,
Parksville
