Petition for the Duggars to be Cancelled

[BrownieMomma]

And I know what Christian Dominionism is. I am willing to be Jim Boob does as well. Even more, I'll bet he supports it. Here's to a journalist who will get Jim Boob and J-Chelle on camera and ask them who really raised their children, for starters.

I read three websites about it, I think I get it. I have never heard that term. Pretty sure JB would deny those words like he denies identifying as Quiverfull.

Yeah, he probably does know about it and espouse it. I presume JB is a supporter of Ted Cruz.

[lisab506]

As much as I love watching the Duggars on TLC I felt conscience bound to sign the petition. The are using their fame and the influence it gives them to spread hate and bigotry. I struggled with this. As much as I love the show, I felt I had to take a stand and tell them to shut the he** up. Bigotry is wrong, and if that's part of their ministry they don't deserve the platform they have.

[Mandysue]

This made me smile

[grandmadugger]

How does this compare with the Duck Dynasty gay-hate speak scandal? They went off the air for a bit but never got cancelled, right? That was A&E but not TLC....

It doesn't compare. Phil Robertson was quoting the Bible, not making judgement, it also included the whole verse that includes things beside sexual sin like murder, adultery, and being drunk. The media didn't run with that though. As far as I know Phil has never done anything to kill the rights of those that are gay he has only said it was a sin. He'll also tell you he is a sinner. The show was also between seasons when it happened, Phil didn't appear in the first 6 of the next season, and their ratings dropped. They went from 13 million to around 10 million viewers. Also as someone else said, the Roberton's weren't worried at all about the show being canceled. They were millionaires before the show.

[Coco]

The two petitions that i know of to keep the show on the air have:

5,838

5,140

Petition against: 115,493 supporters

and MoveOn.org decided to publically announce that it doesn't support the petition in favor of the Duggars that's hosted on their site :lol:

[rodgerdodger]

I think this case is very different from Duck Dynasty, Jon and Kate Plus 8 and Honey Boo Boo.

Duck Dynasty spewed homophobic and racist comments in a notable magazine, and that magazine caused a ton of controversy but like people have mentioned, they never were spending money to try and take away the (small) amounts of rights LGBTQ people have.

JKP8 were never politically active, and the only real controversy they had was their god-awful parenting. So in that case it is easy to compare certain aspects of JKP8 with the Duggars.

Honey Boo Boo was cancelled for "child endangerment" but it was by far the highest viewed TV show on their network. And it was cancelled based on speculation (of course now the details are coming out and they seem more concrete), the bottom line is that it seems like TLC genuinely doesn't want to be a part of any negative comments.

After this the ratings will probably go up, but IMO what the Duggars are doing is way worse than what Mama June is doing. While I think both are horrendous and no child should ever be near a child molester, fear mongering of LGBTQ folks is damaging on a much larger scale.

It's no longer "Look how cute and wholesome this family is! They really do somehow make it all work!" It is skeevy and I am just surprised episodes like where they went to the Creationism "museum" didn't cause any real backlash. I feel like this was a thing that was bound to happen, and tbh I am glad it is happening right now.

The kids have been to the outside world and met people who don't share their views, which I think is a great thing for any kids who are thinking about escaping. However, now it has gotten to the point where these people have actual political power, and the best way to stop it is to stop it now right as the first six are adults/nearing adulthood.

[MPC]

I doubt the petition will work. Unless a viral video about the Duggar's parenting skills leaks out or if one of the children makes a run for it without being married off, it's going to going to make them look like the victims. Even with that disgraceful robocall and those Holocaust remarks, it's going to take a more powerful push to get them off the air.

[Hisey]

While I think both are horrendous and no child should ever be near a child molester, fear mongering of LGBTQ folks is damaging on a much larger scale.

What? Discriminating against LGBTQ in employment and housing is worse than a child getting raped by a predator?

Of course I think any kind of discrimination against the LGBTQ population is wrong. But it cannot be compared to victimizing a helpless child. I'd much rather see a gay adult man be denied the opportunity to rent a house than see a five-year old get molested. In terms of "scale", as you say, I'd think the child's trauma would be on a much larger scale, partly because children have no way of understanding or processing what is happening.

[formergothardite]

It doesn't compare. Phil Robertson was quoting the Bible, not making judgement, it also included the whole verse that includes things beside sexual sin like murder, adultery, and being drunk. The media didn't run with that though. As far as I know Phil has never done anything to kill the rights of those that are gay he has only said it was a sin. He'll also tell you he is a sinner. The show was also between seasons when it happened, Phil didn't appear in the first 6 of the next season, and their ratings dropped. They went from 13 million to around 10 million viewers. Also as someone else said, the Roberton's weren't worried at all about the show being canceled. They were millionaires before the show.

How exactly is comparing a loving gay couple to murder and adultery and being a drunk not making a judgment on gay people as being bad? Do you really believe Phil Roberts and the rest of the Duck Dynasty family go out and vote for gay marriage and support politicians who are pro-gay?

I can quote the Bible to support keeping slaves. Doesn't mean it is a good idea. Quoting the Bible does not excuse someone from preaching hate and yes, comparing a gay person to a murderer is hate.

[lilwriter85]

When some of the network news folks decide to do an "expose" of the Duggars and their beliefs, it'll be the end, especially if they feature the more objectionable and horrifying beliefs of those in the Quiverfull/IBLP movement. The vast majority of Americans have gay family members/friends; marriage equality has been the law in many states for years now, and it didn't bring on Armageddon. In other words, the views of Jim Boob and J-Chelle aren't the majority now. They'll try to scream persecution, but as we've all seen with Duck Dynasty, it's not going to help them.

I live in hope that one or more investigative reporter does more than a ninety-second report on what the Duggars truly believe -- Gothard, gender stereotyping, blanket training, ALL OF IT. It'll also be fun to see if there's someone sufficiently enterprising to dig into how the family is paid by TLC as well. One thing's for sure -- if they hadn't come to TLC's attention, they'd still be living in a three-bedroom house.

And I know what Christian Dominionism is. I am willing to be Jim Boob does as well. Even more, I'll bet he supports it. Here's to a journalist who will get Jim Boob and J-Chelle on camera and ask them who really raised their children, for starters.

I wish something like that would happen. But I can't think of any well known reporter who do it. I think maybe the reporters on 20/20 would tackle those subjects. A few years back, they did an episode on abuses in IFB churches and the Pearls were briefly focused on in that episode.

I agree, without TLC, the Duggars would still be living in a small house and they wouldn't have the luxuries they have now. I used to look at the 19kac FB page a lot, I used to roll my eyes whenever Duggar fans posted stupid shit that you knew wasn't true. There were some Duggar fans on that page claiming that the Duggars were donating their TLC entire salary to charity and that the trips and other things were paid for by the Duggars. It is possible that Boob donates a portion of the TLC salary, but there is no way he would donate their entire paychecks to salary. We know Boob would never finance all those trips with the money he makes from rentals and other businesses. I still remember that NYC episode, where he bitched about buying the kids ice cream from a street vendor and he also bitched about paying for subway fares for 20 plus people. It could have been TLC fronting those costs and Boob could have been acting. If TLC had never given the Duggars a regular show, they would be living in a lifestyle similar to the Bateses right now.

The royalties from the books and the speaking gigs have also helped them. But I see the speaking gigs drying up later on. Most fans have already bought the books. In another thread, a few posters said that they were surprised the Duggars never tried to launch additional merchandising outside of DVD sets. I think TLC might have considered other Duggar merchandise in the past.

Going a bit OT, I also find it interesting some of the other TLC reality show casts never mention or hang out with the Duggars. About a year ago, I was looking at Theresa Caputo's son Larry's instagram. Larry had several pictures posted from some event and he was pictured with Kate from Breaking Amish in one pic and in another pic he was with June and Honey Boo aka Alanna. Now, there weren't any pics of the Duggars, the Little Couple, or other TLC shows. I think the Duggars might have met the Sister Wives family. One crazy wish I have, is that next season after Jessa's wedding episodes, TLC makes the Duggars do crossover episodes with Long Island Medium, the Little Couple, and Breaking Amish.

[kmary1]

You can't really compare the Duggars to honey boo boo's mom because no one out there is going to defend pedophiles or support the idea that it's ok to have them around your children. Plenty of people out there support the idea that gay=evil (I'm definitely not one of those people). The closest comparison might be the duck dynasty guy, and that show didn't get cancelled. Comparing them to the Kardashians is also asinine because the target audiences are completely different and they're on a different network anyway.

I don't agree with almost every belief system the Duggars have, but I also don't think people should be so sensitive and call for show cancellations and boycotts every time they're offended by something. Those 100,000 people who signed the petition can stop watching the show and if ratings are affected then the show will die naturally. Boycotts can work and bring about change - just ask anyone in New England about Market Basket.

[doggie]

You forget they support gothard and still send their kids to his organization

[freejoyanna]

Someone please convince me that all of this isn’t going to affect any of the kids (and adult kids) in a negative way.

I can just imagine that there is increased hostility towards LGBT people in the Duggar family as a result of all of this. After all, from their perspective, LGBT people ruined their well-intentioned martial love photo celebration, and then tried to hinder their Godly testimony by getting them off the air. As if it wasn’t already bad enough that Josh is working for a hate group, that Michelle has likely never encouraged her kids to have a positive relationship with their lesbian aunt, and that the Duggars have no (openly) queer friends to speak of...

For a lot of the kids, the first impression of queer people they’re getting is that they’re attacking their family. They've never had the chance to interact with LGBT people in a positive way. And of course, if any one of them was considering peeking out of the closet, they’ve probably made a full retreat back in.

[Mecca]

Someone please convince me that all of this isn’t going to affect any of the kids (and adult kids) in a negative way.

They are already affected negatively just by being in that family.

I can just imagine that there is increased hostility towards LGBT people in the Duggar family as a result of all of this. After all, from their perspective, LGBT people ruined their well-intentioned martial love photo celebration, and then tried to hinder their Godly testimony by getting them off the air. As if it wasn’t already bad enough that Josh is working for a hate group, that Michelle has likely never encouraged her kids to have a positive relationship with their lesbian aunt, and that the Duggars have no (openly) queer friends to speak of...

For a lot of the kids, the first impression of queer people they’re getting is that they’re attacking their family. They've never had the chance to interact with LGBT people in a positive way. And of course, if any one of them was considering peeking out of the closet, they’ve probably made a full retreat back in.

They have already been given a healthy dose of bull crap from their parents before this happened. These kids have been crammed on buses to campaign about the evils of homosexuality prior to this situation, and as you pointed out earlier, Josh works for a group that wants to criminalize being gay. The kids have been programmed from the start that being gay is evil and needs to be stopped.

JB and Michelle are singing the same old tune most of these fundie fuckers sing when confronted with backlash from the hate they spew. Persecution!! But what they seem to forget is the backlash they get is because of the persecution they do to others that do not fit into their little fundie world. The Duggar parents don't care about all the hatred they are spewing towards the children that are on the other side of this equation. Children are only a gift from God when under their strict rules.

[Becket70]

I doubt the petition will work. Unless a viral video about the Duggar's parenting skills leaks out or if one of the children makes a run for it without being married off, it's going to going to make them look like the victims. Even with that disgraceful robocall and those Holocaust remarks, it's going to take a more powerful push to get them off the air.

I agree the petition will not work. Personally, I wish they never started it. 19 Kids appeals to a certain demographic and they are loyal to a fault. Though it appears the general population is more in favor of gay marriage, the 19 Kids demographic isn't and within that demographic, there is power. Rather, I wish that other aspects of Duggarville be made known to the general population, including their disdain for education. People should be made aware of the seeming immaturity of the children they raised into adulthood. There are so many more issues. For TLC, this is their cash cow and barring something really unforeseen, it may never be cancelled. I just don't get how something as mind-numbingly boring as watching courtship, weddings and babies repeated episode after episode, year after year, can appeal to anybody, including their demographic. (but then last night I watched the original "The Time Machine" with Rod Taylor for the umpteenth time....it never bores me. So perhaps their is a level of comfort for fans of 19 Kids watching the show and all the reruns just like me and The Time Machine)

[eh02]

Full disclosure: as much as I love watching the Duggars, and I'd be bummed to lose my guilty pleasure, I signed.

I don't see the Duggars financially supporting trans, gay, queer etc. exclusionary legislation any different than someone supporting racist legislation. It's gross, backwards, and obsolete, and TLC should care that people are starting to notice that the paychecks they give to Jim Bob and Michelle are getting directly funneled into politicians' pockets.

Sure, TLC is perfectly allowed to continue showing 19 Kids and paying them as long as they want to - nobody can tell them what to do or not do - but there can come a time when the audience really turns on them, and sudden backlash like this is a big red flag to a network that their "cast" is really heading in that direction and that they might become more of a liability than they'd like. How long until Michelle or Jessa or Josh REALLY crosses the line? How long until one of them is caught on camera saying something awful not knowing they are being recorded? It's in TLC's best interest to take note of what is happening and decide whether they really want to be seen as a network that gives people who quite literally believe all trans people are sexual predators and pedophiles a platform.

The petition alone is never going to get the show canceled. But I can't say I think it's totally useless, even if just for some negative attention. I'm so over the whole Duggar pity party, "standing for what is right even when it's unpopular" BS. The only rights they care about are conservative Christians' rights to live in a fundamentalist utopia. They won't be happy until everyone is forced to live in their gay-free, porn-free, birth control-free, guns a plenty vision of the United States.

[Becket70]

I agree the petition will not work. Personally, I wish they never started it. 19 Kids appeals to a certain demographic and they are loyal to a fault. Though it appears the general population is more in favor of gay marriage, the 19 Kids demographic isn't and within that demographic, there is power. Rather, I wish that other aspects of Duggarville be made known to the general population, including their disdain for education. People should be made aware of the seeming immaturity of the children they raised into adulthood. There are so many more issues. For TLC, this is their cash cow and barring something really unforeseen, it may never be cancelled. I just don't get how something as mind-numbingly boring as watching courtship, weddings and babies repeated episode after episode, year after year, can appeal to anybody, including their demographic. (but then last night I watched the original "The Time Machine" with Rod Taylor for the umpteenth time....it never bores me. So perhaps there is a level of comfort for fans of 19 Kids watching the show and all the reruns just like me and The Time Machine)

[BrownieMomma]

There is a very real persecution complex.

This morning, my 25yo son and I were riding to school. He had a headache and asked me to turn off the radio. He said he'd rather listen to Christian talk show than C-rap, I often listen to pop music in the car. I used to listen to Catholic radio until the XM ran out earlier this month.

So I turned on a local Christian station that I know does talk shows in the mornings. I did not recognize the speaker and did not listen long enough to find out. This station typically plays Focus on the Family and Nancy Leigh Demoss in the mornings. This might have been a guest speaker on FOTF.

What the man was saying was that the LGBT community is out to get Christians, to strip Christians of their rights. He was railing on about how LGBT want to silence Christians, to persecute Christians who stand against them. I thought he was probably talking about Houston Mayor Annise Parker's City Attorney who issued subpoenas to Houston pastors to turn over their sermons that mentioned the mayor or homosexuality, among other things.

I had always thought it highly ironic that Christians are called homophobe and accused of hate, and the people doing that never seem to see their own brand of hate to Christians but of course that brand of hate is completely acceptable because it is theirs.

The hatred towards Christians exist. Just look at FJ right here, it very much alive and well here with some. Not all, or I wouldn't be here, but it's pretty rife. If Christians can be called homophobe, then rightly those can be called Christophobes and haters. So how does it make it any different?

The Duggars, or anyone like them, will never change their minds or relax their stances as long as they feel attacked. A petition is likely going to be perceived as attacking, as is the pictures on FB.

I wholly agree it would be better to expose particular practices rather than cancel the show. I would like to see the Duggars going down in flames of their own accord.

[formergothardite]

Does a person have negative attitudes towards gay people? Do they think a gay couple having sex is sinful? Is it a sin that might be less than other sins, but still a sin? If they voted, would they vote that gay couples should not be allowed to marry? Do they think stores should be able to ban gay couples? Well, then they fit the definition of being homophobic. Sugar coating things like this helped anyone. If Christians don't want to be called homophobic, don't be homophobic. Simple solution.

Persecution is denying couples the right to marry and banning entire groups from a public store.

[jerkit]

Does a person have negative attitudes towards gay people? Do they think a gay couple having sex is sinful?

Persecution is denying couples the right to marry and banning entire groups from a public store.

Just to play devils advocate: I don't think the bolded questions are mutually exclusive. I also don't think that if a Christian views homosexual sex as sinful that it automatically means they believe in denying the right to marry. A Christian can personally view homosexual sex as being a sin while still advocating for the fair and equal treatment of homosexual persons both personally and legally.

[JenniferJuniper]

I just don't get how something as mind-numbingly boring as watching courtship, weddings and babies repeated episode after episode, year after year, can appeal to anybody, including their demographic. (but then last night I watched the original "The Time Machine" with Rod Taylor for the umpteenth time....it never bores me. So perhaps their is a level of comfort for fans of 19 Kids watching the show and all the reruns just like me and The Time Machine)

I feel the same way about The Time Machine!

There's another entirely different reason for wanting to see this show cancelled.

"Reality" shows are never a healthy situation for the child performers. We aren't just watching home movies - these kids are actually working and they'll likely never see a dime for their labor. Couple this with the constant bus travel so they can be politically pimped out and their childhoods have been pretty hellish. The kids from the twins on down have never not known this existence (and they are nearly 16). Cancelling the show now won't stop the Duggars from whoring out their kids whenever possible, but at least the little ones would not be required to spend their formative years on camera. And the lack of a TV show would probably lessen overall interest in them.

[formergothardite]

Just to play devils advocate: I don't think the bolded questions are mutually exclusive. I also don't think that if a Christian views homosexual sex as sinful that it automatically means they believe in denying the right to marry. A Christian can personally view homosexual sex as being a sin while still advocating for the fair and equal treatment of homosexual persons both personally and legally.

I did not mean to imply that they would, but having a negative attitude towards gay people, even if that attitude is based around your religion is homophobic.

Real life example. There are people from my past that I used to go to church with, moved away when I was a kid, but I did friend one of their kids on FB. They view all interracial marriages as wrong, unbiblical, and sinful. They wouldn't actually go vote to make it illegal, but they teach that to their children and would do everything they could to stop one of their kids from marrying, dating, or even having sex with a black person. They swear up and down that they aren't racists, but I would think(please nobody come in here and tell me that they aren't) that most people would view them as racists. One of their kids is my age and now admits that her parents raised her in a racists home. It helped that when she came out in public with these views people acted shocked and told her she was being racist. If they had sugar coated it and told her it wasn't really racists to hold personal beliefs that view interracial marriage as sinful and wrong she would have been less likely to have changed. People need to act horrified when they hear anyone compare a happy gay couple to murders, thieves and adulterers and say thing like, "It isn't as bad, but it is still bad and sinful like those thing."

[Mecca]

There is a very real persecution complex.

This morning, my 25yo son and I were riding to school. He had a headache and asked me to turn off the radio. He said he'd rather listen to Christian talk show than C-rap, I often listen to pop music in the car. I used to listen to Catholic radio until the XM ran out earlier this month.

So I turned on a local Christian station that I know does talk shows in the mornings. I did not recognize the speaker and did not listen long enough to find out. This station typically plays Focus on the Family and Nancy Leigh Demoss in the mornings. This might have been a guest speaker on FOTF.

What the man was saying was that the LGBT community is out to get Christians, to strip Christians of their rights. He was railing on about how LGBT want to silence Christians, to persecute Christians who stand against them. I thought he was probably talking about Houston Mayor Annise Parker's City Attorney who issued subpoenas to Houston pastors to turn over their sermons that mentioned the mayor or homosexuality, among other things.

I had always thought it highly ironic that Christians are called homophobe and accused of hate, and the people doing that never seem to see their own brand of hate to Christians but of course that brand of hate is completely acceptable because it is theirs.

The hatred towards Christians exist. Just look at FJ right here, it very much alive and well here with some. Not all, or I wouldn't be here, but it's pretty rife. If Christians can be called homophobe, then rightly those can be called Christophobes and haters. So how does it make it any different?

The Duggars, or anyone like them, will never change their minds or relax their stances as long as they feel attacked. A petition is likely going to be perceived as attacking, as is the pictures on FB.

I wholly agree it would be better to expose particular practices rather than cancel the show. I would like to see the Duggars going down in flames of their own accord.

Yeah, just no. You cannot compare people speaking up for their rights and highlighting actions of bigotry and the Duggars using their money and fame to actively help legislate discrimination against women and the gay community. Big, big difference.

This persecution theory many Christians sling around just needs to cease. Sure, they are so persecuted they have lobbyists groups in Washington, representation in government, numerous radios stations, numerous television stations and shows, movies, production companies, music on mainstream stations, record companies, bookstores, numerous Christain related businesses, literature, numerous exemptions from the government, tax breaks, churches on ever corner, schools..... Yeah, this sounds like a group that is just not adequately represented in society in the U.S. and really has it hard..

The Duggars have Constitutional rights to their religion, but they do not have the right to diminish the Constitutional rights of others. Basically, live your life and let people live their's. No one here is actively lobbying for the destruction of The Constitutional rights of Christians. I cannot say the same for some groups of Christians.

[MatthewDuggar]

Since when is it's someone's "right" to have their own TV show in this country? Isn't it a privilege? Nobody is telling them they cannot hold to their beliefs and viewpoints, we just want TLC to kill the show.

Then let them go on and be fruitful and multiply all by themselves.

[lilwriter85]

Since when is it's someone's "right" to have their own TV show in this country? Isn't it a privilege? Nobody is telling them they cannot hold to their beliefs and viewpoints, we just want TLC to kill the show.

Then let them go on and be fruitful and multiply all by themselves.

It is a privilege and I think it is something the Duggars forget at times. If the show had been on a broadcast network, it might not have lasted. Broadcast networks sometimes can shows for the ratings that many cable shows get. The Duggars lucked out that a cable network took a chance on them after the documentaries. The Duggars are allowed to hold their beliefs and viewpoints and that goes for other reality show stars and actors/actresses on scripted TV shows. There have been TV actors/actresses involved in controversy due to their beliefs or certain actions e.g.(Roseanne, Charlie Sheen etc) and sometimes their shows continued on until they got cancelled for other reasons.

I think 19kac will die a slow death. I do think some people who have liked the Duggars for the "cute large family" thing are rethinking and doing research on the family's beliefs. Outside of the Duggars' beliefs, there have been rumors over the years about them not being the nicest people in the world. Gossip on twop was that former Duggar neighbors described Michelle as a bitch who was constantly yelling at the kids and I recall a rumor about Boob going to a HVAC business and trying to get the owners to give him a cheaper estimate for the TTH.