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Project Positive Derpy Hooves! I Have a Request if Anypony is Willing to Listen


StoryTail

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Faqs/questions about this project:

 

Q.  What is this project about?

A.  The point of this project is to encourage Hasbro to make one episode that teaches a lesson not to look down on people that are disabled like Derpy Hooves.  It also puts Derpy in a positive light on how she could correctly be portrayed and voice act.

 

Q.  How do I support this project?

A.  There are many ways you can support this project!  You can create a story, as an idea for an episode, displaying Derpy Hooves and a cast of disabled ponies interacting with the Mane 6 and ultimately teaching them a lesson on disabled ponies, and how they're not to be looked down on.  You can also spread the idea to other people, create a petition and collect signatures on Change.org or another site, and you can also help us organize and brainstorm more ideas for this project.

 

Q.  Wait!  Can you just make a petition yourself on Change.org?

A.  Unfortunately, I'm very paranoid about my own privacy; I've never created a petition before except when I manually collected signatures on a forum, but that hardly counts.  If anyone knows how to run a petition please PM me and we'll discuss what could be said in the petition and all.  I'd be grateful if someone would do this petition for me.

 

Q.  So how exactly are we going to get Hasbro's attention for this?

A.  We can have all the supporters send an email to Hasbro, requesting that they make this episode.  However this farther down the line when we get enough supporters.  For now, we need help organizing and get this project all worked out.

 

Please help me get this project organized and planned out!  I'm not the best project manager in the world, nor am I a great leader, so I could use all the help I can get!

 

 

This is pretty much a repost of a good section of my introduction, but it gets the message across on what I wanted to talk about and I thought I'd start an official thread for it...  Since someone wants to jump right into the project without waiting for others to join in first.  *Looks at DarkPony*  Lol!

 

I'd be grateful if I could get more support for this!

 

 

The Message:

 

I've been thinking of this long and hard since the Derpy Hooves controversy occurred and wanted this very much to happen but didn't have the nerve to ask bronies if they'd be willing to contribute.

 

As we all know, Hasbro censored Derpy Hooves because she was portrayed in a way that seemed to be a stereotype of a mentally handicapped person.  Some people claimed that it offends people who are actually mentally disabled.  While there were some that were mentally disabled and said they weren't offended by Derpy Hooves and some even liked her.

 

There was one that particularly struck me, long ago, that said he/she enjoyed Derpy Hooves because they don't often portray disabled characters and he/she could relate to her.  Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find where I found this comment, I read it in one of the news articles.  It could be that I mixed up what was said, but there are plenty more that are similar to that comment:

 

 

I know how this could be solved- Just call her Ditzy Doo from now on, and give her some speaking parts and let her name actually be said- like one of the characters you don't see as much, like Granny Smith, or Cheerilee. And another thing.. Derpy pretty much represented disabled people. This is also a show about friendship, not just excluding someone who isn't normal. I have ADHD, and Derpy doesn't offend me at all- she is, in fact, my favorite character. When they excluded Derpy Hooves, they taught people about how everyone else who is different can never be important or shouldn't have an opinion or speak about anything. Good job, Hasbro. Good job.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/02/amy-keating-rogers-response-to-derpy.html

 

 

For what it's worth - I have exactly the same condition as Derpy/Ditzy (strabismus) and know just how it makes you clumsy, as you lose depth perception. I personally took no offense whatsoever from this character and in fact think its wonderful that one of the most popular characters on this show has the same issue as myself.
On the other hand, I'm an adult, so can shrug off any disparaging comments. Kids can be cruel and getting teased as a kid hurts. However whether 'Derpy' ot 'Ditzy' they both mean the same to me, and kids could make 'Muffin' sould like an insult if they wanted to.
All in all I'd say that either name is fine, but whatever happen they should never cut the character. Ditzerpy is getting more screen time in Season 4 (at least, from the bits of the show I've watched over my kids' shoulders) which is all to the good...
If they allowed a bit more character development for this character, making it clearer that she's not stupid, just clumsy, then maybe the people who think she's an insult to the mentally handicapped would be appeased.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/02/amy-keating-rogers-response-to-derpy.html

 

 

Derpy is by far theeee most relatable beautiful not in an odd way character and I despise the fools who went to great lenghs to ruin her since although a cartoon character I can very easily relate since when I was born I had a cleft pallet and couldnt open my right eye but i got sorted now just have barely visible scars.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/02/amy-keating-rogers-response-to-derpy.html

 

 

Oh come on, I have Autism and I didn't find it offensive until they censored it. So does that mean all mentally changed people like me are gonna be censored too?

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/02/amy-keating-rogers-response-to-derpy.html

 

 

As somebody who has different physical disabilities and neurological disorders that would make me considered "derpy" at times, I am rather offended by the way the alterations were handled. IMO, it is one thing to be considerate, but too many people are taking this to, *ahem*, stupid extremes - look at the well-intended "end the R word" campaign, which seems to promote abolition of the word - and not targeting the behavior - and doing so in such a way that ignores the numerous, and common, non-derogatory use of the word 'retarded' as it related to mechanical, aeronautical, automotive engineering, etc.

http://www.equestriadaily.com/2012/02/amy-keating-rogers-response-to-derpy.html

 

 

You have a point. It seems as if everytime a show brings about a character who appears to be disabled (in this case Derpy looked it but wasn’t) all the whiny moms start complaining and using us like this. Is it so wrong to be what we are? I’ve seen messages from other retarded people like myself who love Derpy and were upset when Hasbro removed her name and un-derped her eyes. I suggest we make an open letter to Hasbro and have people with disabilities, who love Derpy to sign it and send it in. If could get some parents on board as well, that would be awesome because there were some parents who hated the change too.

http://mlp.derpynews.com/the-last-roundup-reairs-with-derpy-censored/

 

 

This post right here, this is what I’ve been saying. That and the whole idea that Derpy was never mentally handicapped, just clumsy due to being cross eyed. Never mind that she was doing her job in Hurricane Fluttershy and didn’t cause any accidents, unlike somepony. As a person who is disabled it hurts me to think that if I were in a show I could be censored just because some people don’t like it.

http://mlp.derpynews.com/the-last-roundup-reairs-with-derpy-censored/

 

And let's not forget the great article, "To Derp is to Love.  To Love is to Tolerate."

http://firestorm-can.deviantart.com/journal/To-Derp-is-to-Love-To-Love-is-to-Tolerate-287553810

 

Seeing there are people that are mentally disabled, love Derpy, and may even look up to her, shouldn't we have an episode that represents Derpy Hooves in a positive look?  We should have an episode dedicated to people that are mentally and physically disabled; and how they're not to be looked down upon!  We should request Hasbro to make that episode, and Derpy Hooves should be in it!

 

It's been done before in a PBS episode of Clifford The Big Red Dog where Clifford and his friends met a three legged dog and learn to treat him no differently from other people.  Why not one for My Little Pony, a show that teaches tolerance?

 

Here's what I thought for an episode so far:

1.  Rainbow Dash formally introduces Derpy Hooves to the ponies when they see her talking to Derpy.

2.  Derpy's trademark love of muffins and mail delivery work is shown, but there's another aspect of her that we have not seen; she often visits a class of special need fillies.  Often she entertains the fillies and help them see that they can still have a bright future even with their disabilities.  (I've also thought of an explanation for her bubble cutie mark and thought she could have an extreme talent in blowing bubbles in all kinds of shapes to entertain the fillies).

3.  Derpy will be portrayed to have a lazy eye disorder:  either strabismic or anisometropic.  She'll be clumsy due to her eyes not giving her good visual aid.  She will not be mentally disabled but she could have a learning disability like visual and auditory processing disorder, but that might be a bit much...

4.  The Mane 6 spend time and get to know the fillies and Derpy.

5.  There's some festival going on in Ponyville that they have to set up.  Derpy and the fillies try to help out but the ponies make the mistake of telling them they don't have to partly due to their underestimation of the fillies' abilities and Derpy's clumsiness.

6.  Trouble occurs, which the Mane 6 try to fend off, but Derpy and the fillies end up saving the day.

 

So...  Anypony that would be into making this happen and ask Hasbro to make this episode?  We could discuss further in another thread if enough ponies are interested.

 

So yeah!  Since this is "another thread" would anyone else be willing to help and support this project?

 

So far, DarkPony and I discussed that we could create several stories with the similar plot we had in mind:  the Mane 6 learning to treat ponies with disabilities like people and not to underestimate them.

 

It'd really help if there were people that actually have disabilities to support us on this project!  We need all the input we can get on portraying those with disabilities correctly!

Edited by StoryTail
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Thanks, FoxOsprey!

 

Right now the stage is that we develop our plot and come up with various stories with it!  We plan out what's acceptable in the portrayal of Derpy Hooves without her seeming to be offensive and wrong!  Just because Hasbro did one "oops" with her doesn't mean she can't ever voice act again!

 

The idea is to show Hasbro how she can be portrayed tastefully.  And with enough support, we can draw Hasbro's attention to these collection of stories.  We'll need a lot of people to message them to grab their attention.

Edited by StoryTail
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Lol!  It doesn't matter!  :P

 

Any story you turn in is good!  (As long as it's clean...)

 

I doubt that Hasbro would adopt the story we write!  Probably just make their own story based on our idea at most!

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Just think in terms of the typical MLP plot!  It's usually kinda like a sandwich transition of events!  =P

 

1.  Everyone starts out happy and doing their thing.

2.  Suddenly trouble appears and moods are changed.

3.  Problem has been resolved and everyone is happy again!

 

xD

 

Edit:  Btw!  I really need to go sleep!  It's past 5!  I'll see you tomorrow.... or later today, lol.

Edited by StoryTail
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I haven't seen a single episode in a few months.. found a new fanfic for me to read.. something to get me thinking


So exhausted.. but, my book.. is important.

 

*yawns*

 

I'm good though..


I might fall asleep.. NO! Mustn't sleep.


And.. I'm out!! Peaces!!

 

*Hobbles over to room, trying not to fall over*

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The idea right now is to develop a story for an episode that puts a positive light on disabled people.

 

Once we get enough support, we can draw Hasbro's attention to this idea and request that they make such an episode.

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