BBC is accused of trying to indoctrinate kids after CBeebies programme says FISH can swap genders
BBC accused of trying to indoctrinate children after CBeebies program says FISH can switch gender
- A segment showed how some species can change from ‘a boy fish to a girl fish’
The BBC has been accused of trying to indoctrinate young children by telling them that fish can change sex.
CBeebies, their channel aimed at children under the age of seven, aired an excerpt about how some species can go from being ‘a boy fish to a girl fish’.
The claim has drawn anger from campaigners who fear it was intended to normalize the controversial ideology at a young age – and is in any case inaccurate given that fish have no gender identity.
They’re also suspicious of the timing of the CBeebies entry after the British Museum flagged fish that are “protogynous hermaphrodites” to coincide with the start of Pride month.
It comes after the BBC was criticized last weekend for a pre-watershed episode of Casualty in which a non-binary character spoke of a ‘top operation’.
Because hermaphrodites, clownfish (pictured in the show), are born with both sets of reproductive organs and can change from male to female if the alpha female in their group dies
The Safe Schools Alliance, which campaigns against inappropriate sex education classes, said: ‘CBeebies indoctrinate toddlers in the ideological concept of turning from a boy into a girl.
“BBC sent the clownfish for Pride month to target children and once again failed in their responsibility to protect.”
Twitter user Sion Jones, who saw the snippet, said: “The fact that there’s obviously been a meeting where this was discussed in terms of trans, but they’ve also tried to maintain the plausible deniability of ‘it’s just a fun fact about fish! ‘ is very disappointing.’
Some Twitter users pointed out that while a small number of fish can change sex, the BBC falsely claimed they can ‘change sex’ – and in any case, it doesn’t prove that humans can do the same.
CBeebies, the BBC’s channel aimed at children under seven, broadcast a segment about how some species can go from being ‘a boy fish to a girl fish’
As hermaphrodites, clownfish are born with both sets of reproductive organs and can change from male to female if the alpha female in their group dies.
The one-minute clip, shown between programs on the CBeebies channel on Sunday morning, featured puppeteer Dodge T Dog in the studio.
He asked viewers, “Want to learn something really cool about fishing?” You’d? Listen carefully – some fish can change from a boy fish to a girl fish or from a girl fish to a boy fish.’
He continued, while a video showed the orange and white fish made famous by Finding Nemo, “Let’s look at the clownfish. Aren’t they beautiful? They live in a large group and their leader is always a female fish. But if the group needs a new leader, that male fish can turn into a female fish to become the leader.
“There is also a fish called the kobudai. And when the female reaches a certain age, it turns into a male fish in a few months. Wow.’ He concluded: ‘Not all fish can change sex, but quite a few can. The world really is a beautiful place.’
Conservatives for Women’s Caroline Ffiske told the Mail last night: ‘The fact that the BBC is inserting this clownish story into children’s programming during Pride Month is disastrous.
“Many of us are unfortunately very confident that the intention is to confuse young children about their gender.”
The BBC did not respond to requests for comment.