Debuting on May 2, 2016, The Loud House is an animated program that follows 11-year-old Lincoln Loud and his 10 sisters as he gives an inside look at what it takes to survive the chaos of a huge family. The program is the first Nickelodeon show to feature a married same-sex couple and is also the launching pad for the upcoming Los Casagrandes, which centers around one of Lincoln Loud’s friend, Ronnie Anne, living with her large, multi-generational Latin family in the big city.
First Nickelodeon Program To Fully Embrace the LGBTQ+ Community
LGBTQ+ representation has been sorely lacking in children’s media – however Nickelodeon is one of the major networks now addressing this issue with The Loud House by having Lincoln Loud’s friend Clyde McBride’s parent’s consisting of two married men.
As Emma Teitel explains in her 2016 article Nickelodeon’s The Loud House Groundbreaking, Embraces Diversity, Nickelodeon’s decision to portray a happily married gay couple in a kids’ cartoon is groundbreaking for another, more subtle reason: gay characters (in particular gay male characters) may be historically absent from kids’ entertainment but their voices aren’t. Teitel states that there’s a “gay voice” characterized by a lisp and/or “up-speak” that many unfavorable characters in children’s cartoons featured – however this is not the case with The Loud House.
While Clyde’s parents are minor characters on the series, Lincoln’s sister Luna is a more prominent character and one who display’s affection for another female classmate. In the episode “L is for Love”, it is revealed that 15-year-old Luna Loud has a crush on another girl named Sam. This particular episode is an excellent example of not having to “come out” to one’s family. When Luna has her “I have a crush” that all the siblings have in common during the episode, Luna’s moment is not treated any differently than the others.
I’m excited for all the children watching, who one day may have a “Sam” crush as well. I wish I had this growing up, so it’s fantastic progress that future generations will. The best part is how normalized Luna’s crush, and Clyde’s parents are. While the media might be excited (yes, I’m a small part of that) the kids watching will see it as no big deal, and that is worth celebrating. It’s only fair to have some non-straight representation to reflect the diversity of the real world of the kids watching.
– Kaydee Eleanor Donohoo, “The Loud House” Continues To Break LGBT Barriers
Along with fully embracing and normalizing LGBTQ+ relationships for their child-centric audience, The Loud House is also the launching pad for Los Casagrandes, a multi-generational Hispanic-centered family program – a rarity in the animated realm.
Next Page: Diversifying Nickelodeon’s Lineup with Los Casagrandes
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