It's almost December, that time of the year when everyone gets in the Christmas spirit, ready to celebrate the holiday that brings people together. I watched the classic Christmas special, Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, recently, and I realized that there was a lot of discrimination taking place in this kid-directed short.

Rudolf's parents were dissatisfied with a part of him that he couldn't control. He was born with the red nose and they treated him like he had the plague. They were convinced that caking his nose with dirt would deceive everyone, but Rudolf couldn't hide it, and he shouldn't have had to. This particular scene made me think about LBGT people who experience this type of discrimination from parental figures. They want to be honest about who they are and others can't accept the differences. Having a different sexuality doesn't make anyone less of a person and they shouldn't have to pretend to be interested in something that they're not.

This lesson also applies to the scene of Rudolf where he's at flying practice and everyone sees his nose glowing. He's ostracized and treated as if he is a freak. They refuse to let him participate in the games and even Santa discriminates against him; he says that it's a shame that his nose glows since he had a great take off. I was kind of shocked at this. It's like people who blame the parents for a child being different. "They used to be a good person, but now that we know they're gay, they aren't anymore." That line is such crap. One feature does not define an entire person. We have to look at who they are, what values they have, and how they approach the world and the people in to make a decision about whether they're a good person or not, and that's with a lot of speculation because everyone has different values and beliefs. We all see the world differently, some with optimism and some with pessimism. It's not cut and dry.

Now, this special ends on a positive note since Rudolf saves Christmas and leads the way through the snow storm, but acceptance took him running away and returning months later to discover that everyone had been looking for him. The fact that he ran away, and that's what made the other reindeer realize how much they loved him, shouldn't have been an acceptable response. He shouldn't have felt the need to run away. It's sad reality for families who ostracize someone only for them to run away or worse, such as committing suicide. If everyone could see the worth or another, then maybe this world would be better off.

I've spent a lot of time discussing the negative aspects of a childhood show and now I must discuss the positives since there are some. Clarice, the female reindeer that befriends Rudolf, tells him that she thinks his nose is wonderful and that he should be proud of being different because being special is a good thing. I think this is probably the best message that this movie conveys because it teaches kids that bullying is not okay and that we should love each other even though we're different. It's so important for the younger generation to know this because the world will never stop changing, but if we can teach younger people that acceptance is the best thing, then we may be able to steer the world in a positive direction.