Twitter users have united to make Frozen heroine, Princess Elsa, Disney’s first LGBT character in the blockbuster’s highly anticipated sequel.
Alexis Moncada, who created #GiveElsaAGirlfriend, said she wanted young girls to understand a princess can fall in love with another princess.
“Growing up, I never saw a princess fall in love with another princess — and neither have girls growing up right now,” Ms Moncada reported for MTV.
“The entertainment industry has given us girls who have fallen in love with beasts, ogres who fall for humans, and even grown women who love bees.
“But we’ve never been able to see the purity in a queer relationship.”
Originally praised for its progressiveness, Frozen follows the story of Elsa and Anna, two sisters who confront adversity and prove it’s not always the prince who saves the princess.
Author and social commentator Jane Caro said the possibility of giving Elsa a girlfriend would come down to audience research.
She said a social media campaign of this kind “opens a door to ideas that would otherwise never cross the producers mind.”
With its much-loved theme song, “Let It Go”, already adopted as an LGBT anthem, Frozen director Chris Buck hinted the sequel would tackle issues children face today.
“I think we’re very aware of what is happening in society,” Mr Buck told MTV.
“I don’t think any of us take [them] lightly, even though they can be very funny and entertaining, the messages that our movies have and the influence they can have on young people.”
The LGBT community has used Twitter on many occasions to promote and support its campaigns, such as #ComingOutMatters and the ‘It Get’s Better Project’.
Senior Buzzfeed writer Tahlia Pritchard praised the use of social media to develop the latest campaign.
“When things are trending and being talked about, and social media campaigns like #GiveElsaAGirlfriend are getting traction, it allows people to feel like they’re involved, like they’re helping make the change and ultimately it’s bringing people together in a way that isn’t seen in traditional media,” she said.
Although Disney has taken steps to increase LGBT representation, Walt Disney Studios has performed badly in the annual GLAAD Studio Responsibility Index that measures LGBT representation in television and film.
According to the index, Walt Disney Studios has the weakest historical record when it comes to LGBT-inclusive films. GLAAD has also called for more LGBT characters in Marvel and LucasFilm movies.
Disney has not responded to 2016 GLAAD findings or the #GiveElsaAGirlfriend campaign.
