I recently came across this clip from SNL called "Peeper's Insurance" that really upset me. The link to the video is below, as well as some of the highlights:
http://www.hulu.com/watch/119788/saturday-night-live-peepers-insurance#s-p1-sr-i4
"We know that you're okay, because we're watching you."
"You pay nothing, but we're still there, ... when you're getting out of the shower."
"Thomas Peeper's Insurance. We're keeping an eye on you."
This reference to "peeping toms" in a comedic arena is in extremely poor taste and is downright offense. SNL makes light of a serious issue, a crime that is very real. Stalking terrifies up to 3.4 million people each year in the US. It is not something people should be laughing about.
This video is creepy as well as being offensive. The spokesman for "Peeper's Insurance" is watching a family, through the windows at night. He watches a girl and boy kiss on the couch. He watches a woman get out of the shower. He watches a woman unplug a drain, which is a thinly veiled reference to a hand job. The man is clearly deriving some sort of sick pleasure from watching these people. I'm not laughing at this.
It is really not okay for a tv show to belittle such a grave issue into nothing more than a joke. This sends the wrong messages about stalking, making it seem amusing and not at all serious. It is insulting to people who have been stalked, and is very triggering. What's worse is that this video was aired during the first ever Stalking Awareness Month. This is a time that is meant to promote knowledge and due regard of this crime. Instead, it is being minimized and trivialized by a major tv show.
In short, SNL, this is not okay.
For more information on stalking and Stalking Awareness Month, check out http://www.stalkingawarenessmonth.org/
-Emily Rion
