A college in California hosted a forum last week explaining to students how “VeggieTales” — the children’s cartoon hosted by an anthropomorphized cucumber and tomato — reinforces racist stereotypes.
The two-hour event, which took place at Cal State San Marcos and centered on a “critical look at whiteness,” was inspired by a class — “The Communications of Whiteness” — taught by professor Dreama Moon, according to The College Fix.
At the forum, attendees participated in a project suggesting the Christian cartoon series advances racially based stereotypes because the majority of the show’s villains are purportedly vegetables of color and their accents often sounds ethnic.
“When kids see the good white character triumph over the bad person of color character,” the project stated, “they are taught that white is right and minorities are the source of evil.”
The forum also featured other projects, like “White Avoidance,” “Civilized vs. Uncivilized,” “Kill the Land, Kill the Indian,” “White Women’s Role in White Supremacy” and “Gun Ownership and Racial Bias.”
Some students at the university were offered extra credit for attending the forum, like those in classes taught by professor Gloria Pindi, who teaches intercultural communication and women and gender studies.
One of Pindi’s students told The College Fix the forum backfired.
“I feel like the university system [leaders] are a bunch of hypocrites, they’re talking about stopping racism and promoting equality for all, yet they have no problem bashing white people,” he explained. “They’re trying to make people feel guilty for being white.”