The Barbie movie celebrates a woman-centric dream world, where little girls are inspired to do and be anything they want. It’s feminine, feminist, and irresistibly fun. So of course, Christian Republicans think it’s demonic.
You’ve probably seen Piers Morgan’s manbaby whine or the comparatively tame takedown issued by Ginger Gaetz, a human woman who married alleged trafficker/Florida congressman Matt Gaetz. She complains about Ken’s “disappointingly low T”, and the fact that a movie about a plastic doll world somehow didn’t focus on “family” and Jesus. But oh boy, this is just the tip of the iceberg of weird right-wing Christian rage against Barbie. When you look into the “controversy”, you’ll start to find things that make Matt and Ginger Gaetz look normal.
Though he’s not the first to make the absolutely wild claim that Barbie is demonic (absurd statements like this do flourish in comments sections across the internet), one man is responsible for the idea spreading like hellfire (sorry) across the extremist Christian internet. Ivan Tuttle, of Tennessee-based Ivan Tuttle Ministries International, felt moved to make a Facebook post warning good Christian families not to take their children to see the movie, claiming that Barbie is “full of demonic influences!”
It is full of Demonic influences and do not be surprised if your child suddenly starts to behave differently! The Lord showed me the Millions of Demons that will be released on your children! Don’t take this lightly. “They are Coming for Your Children!”
Then there’s Kent Christmas, another Tennessee-based preacher/mullet enthusiast who, despite sounding like a made-up character from a Chick Tract, is actually the pastor at Regeneration Nashville. His wife is also a pastor there, but despite having a slightly less regressive stance on women than most of his peers, Christmas hasn’t stopped going full balls-to-the-wall weird on LGBTQ+ people. In fact, you might say he’s obsessed with us. Apparently, not only have we stolen the rainbow from God, but he can see the demons inside us making us gay. Not only that but once these demons take up residence inside us, they start changing our appearance. Personally, I think he’s confusing vibes and post-coming-out makeovers for demons, but potato tomato.
If that sounded familiar to you, then you’ve probably encountered some of his previous work. The man’s a little bit famous for his spiritual-conspiracy theories about queer people and mass media, and now Barbie (of all things) has got him hopping mad about homosexuals (and Satan) once again. Despite not actually having watched the movie yet, Christmas was pretty sure he knew what it was about: “transsexual and transgender and homosexuality”. While a Barbie movie on those topics sounds awesome (I’d watch it), we all know that’s not actually the case. Though for the religious right, the fact that Barbie stars a trans actor and a lesbian actor (Hari Nef and Kate McKinnon, respectively) is probably “sinful” enough. Christmas, not content with merely denouncing Barbie from the pulpit, decided to curse the film as well. Sounds like witchcraft to me, but I guess it’s a Jesus curse?
“I curse in the name of the Lord this new Barbie movie that has been released full of transsexual and transgender and homosexuality in the name of the Lord. May God loose a judge, may God loose a Holy judgment. Hallelujah.”
I mean, it would be pretty metal if it weren’t so disturbing. If it were just this lone weirdo accusing the Barbie of being full of demons, or even just one church, that would be one thing. Religious extremists say the darnedest stuff and all that. But it hasn’t stopped there. April Ajoy, ex-evangelical and LGBTQ+ activist, has collected multiple takes in the TikTok video below. All of which espouses the idea that Barbie is full of demons that will infect your precious Christian babies with homosexuality.
Admittedly, homosexual demon possession (don’t threaten me with a good time) adds a certain spice to the other ridiculous yet boring reasons that right-wingers are calling for a boycott of the film. Many have also called on folks to boycott Disney (which didn’t produce or distribute the film) because I guess Christo-fascists don’t read the trades. While it’s easy to dunk on these absurd and completely unhinged rantings, there is a genuinely dangerous side to all this.
The fact that a group of people genuinely believe in gay demons seems pretty funny, up until you realize they’re not really seen as fringe on the right. They actually have a hell of a lot of influence on the Republican party. It’s not just “normal” Christian bigots pushing this wave of discriminatory anti-woman, anti-LGBTQ+, and anti-reproductive freedom laws. Many of them genuinely believe demons and demon possession are behind everything they don’t like and are trying to legislate against.
Then there are the vulnerable young queer people growing up in these dangerous and abusive congregations. Exorcisms are still being performed on people, (including children) often against their will. And the frequency with which they’re performed is only increasing among certain American Christian communities.
The idea that the Barbie movie (or frankly anyone or anything else) is possessed by homosexual demons is laughable, and so are the people who believe it. But unfortunately, laughable isn’t the same thing as harmless. That’s a mistake we keep making over and over again. We need to learn that people can be contemptible, ridiculous, and dangerous all at the same time. Go ahead and laugh at them, but don’t close the window and dismiss them when you’re done. Christo-fascism is a credible threat, and their absurdity makes them all the more dangerous.
(featured image: Warner Bros./Universal Pictures)
