A grand jury in Texas placed criminal charges on Netflix for refusing to take down “Cuties”.
According to the jury, there is a “probable cause” a felony has been committed. The production is accused of “promotion of lewd visual material depicting a child,” LADbible reveals.
Despite the accusation, director Maïmouna Doucouré claims the story was inspired by her own life experiences and advocates against the over-sexualization of young girls. The French-Senegalese filmmaker explains:
“Our girls see that the more a woman is overly sexualized on social media, the more she is successful. And the children just imitate what they see, trying to achieve the same result without understanding the meaning. And, yeah, it’s dangerous.”
According to Doucouré, the story should remind the society that children must be protected, especially “at a time when social media is so important.”
Even after facing severe criticism led by Senator Ted Cruz, Netflix defended the movie and did not take it down.
However, not everyone agrees that the movie should be shown to the public. In a recent press release, Tyler County Criminal District Attorney Lucas Babin stated:
“The legislators of this state believe promoting certain lewd material of children has destructive consequences. If such material is distributed on a grand scale, isn’t the need to prosecute more, not less? A grand jury in Tyler County found probable cause for this felony, and my job is to uphold the laws of this state and see that justice is done.”
Statement released by Tyler County District Attorney’s Office on #Cuties Netflix indictment: pic.twitter.com/D8uwHravdD
— Matt Schaefer (@RepMattSchaefer) October 6, 2020
Although prior to the film release, the media services provider posted an apology for “inappropriate artwork,” after hearing the Texas jury’s decision, Netflix argued that “the charge is without merit.”
Nevertheless, in a letter to Attorney General William Barr, Texas senator Ted Cruz claims that the controversial film “sexualizes young girls, through dance scenes simulating sexual activities.” Furthermore, he used social media to express his position:
“Following Netflix’s disturbing promotion of ‘Cuties,’ I sent a letter calling on the DOJ to investigate whether Netflix, its executives, or the filmmakers violated any federal laws against the production and distribution of child pornography.”
In addition, Democrat Tulsi Gabbard also slammed Netflix for releasing “complicit” content that “will certainly whet the appetite of pedophiles & help fuel the child sex trafficking trade.”
.@netflix child porn "Cuties" will certainly whet the appetite of pedophiles & help fuel the child sex trafficking trade. 1 in 4 victims of trafficking are children. It happened to my friend's 13 year old daughter. Netflix, you are now complicit. #CancelNetflix pic.twitter.com/GI8KFH7LFq
— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) September 12, 2020
