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  • 2021-06-09 (xsd:date)
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  • Did Kids Yell 'He's a Knitter' on the Cartoon 'Arthur'? (en)
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  • On June 6, 2021, a video clip from an episode of a children's TV show resurfaced on TikTok. The moment from the Arthur cartoon purportedly showed kids and adults yelling he's a knitter in what appeared to be colonial times. Comments under the video reflected that the kids and adults yelling knitter sounded like they were saying a racial epithet. It's true that Arthur was repeatedly called a knitter in an old episode of the show. The episode, Arthur Unravels, was from the first portion of Season 14, Episode 8. The 2010 episode is available for purchase on YouTube. The animated series first debuted in 1996 and launched its 24th season in 2021. In the plot, Arthur's grandmother, Grandma Thora, teaches him about knitting. Later, Arthur realizes he doesn't want the kids at school to find out that he enjoys knitting. At recess, Arthur and Buster hide in the bushes so they can knit together and show each other their work. Binky plays somewhat of a bully who picks on Arthur for having the hobby. After recess, the children are back in class. Mr. Ratburn is teaching about American history. Mr. Ratburn called on Arthur after he was daydreaming about being in colonial times with his knitting materials. Later at home, Arthur has a nightmare that's set in colonial times. In the scene, a letter K was placed on Arthur, which may have been a reference to The Scarlet Letter. It took place with stocks behind the characters, an old form of public punishment. There was no indication that the use of the word knitter was intended to be offensive. Later in the episode, everything ends up being ok. It's a children's TV show, after all. Binky, who bullied Arthur for knitting, is shown knitting with others, joining in on the new hobby. The episode appeared to simply teach children about the harmless act of knitting and also was about being accepting of the hobbies of others. The video's description said that the educational objective for Arthur was that he learns that stereotypes about who does certain hobbies aren't true and that he should follow his own creative talents. Under the TikTok video, which was viewed 300,000 times in its first three days, commenters joked about the word knitter sounding close to the N-word. @nadiryounan said: If they would've said Knitt-A, it would've been ok. Another commenter, @nessawithab, remarked: Oh god leave my generation's cartoon alone we ain’t that sensitive lol. @areallygoodjoke said of the third mention of the word knitter that it was way too aggressive. @jxhnxthxnv, the TikTok user who posted the video, responded to everyone: Guys, again, I'm not trying to cancel Arthur. This is a joke that most of you have handled the wrong way. This is just a kid's show lol. In sum, it's true that an old episode of Arthur featured the phrase he's a knitter in a nightmare set in colonial times. (en)
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