Friday, November 4, 2011

Dehumanizing Asexuals

The day after Asexual Awareness Week ended, I happened to see a commercial for "The Big Bang Theory" that was blatantly anti-asexual.  Full disclosure, I don't watch the show and what I know of it is from the AVEN message boards.  One of the main characters has been consistently portrayed as heteroromantic asexual.  In the most recent commercial, Cooper's girlfriend is making advances on him and making her intentions known.  This would not be so offensive if it were not for the announcers declaration of "Is it finally time for Sheldon to join the human race?"

While most people just see this as silly advertising, the implication is clear: unless you are sexually active, or at least desire sex, than you are not human.  Asexuals are not part of the human race.  Whether or not it is played for laughs is not the point.  Think about it.  Would this be acceptable if it were said of any other sexual orientation, race, or gender?