The Real Problem with The Real O'Neils

A few weeks ago while watching Grey’s Anatomy, a preview came on for a new ABC sitcom called The Real O’Neils. At first, nothing about the trailer really caught my attention. It just seemed like another corny series that will probably be cancelled within one or two seasons. One line, however, really hit a nerve with me, and that line was an eating disorder joke. After doing research on this show, it seems that a major punch line in the plot of this program is surrounding eating disorders, and more specifically, male anorexia.

           

            Not only is this a completely distasteful and unfunny joke, but also it’s incredibly harmful for many reasons. Eating disorders are not a joke. Nothing is funny about kidney failure, feeding tubes, and crippling depression. As someone who spent three months in the hospital because of anorexia, I can tell you first hand it is nowhere near comedic.

            Another reason this is incredibly problematic is males who suffer from eating disorders are stigmatized even more so than women who do. Eating disorders are viewed as a ‘white girl problem’, which causes men and People of Color to be more hesitant to come forward and seek out treatment. Making male eating disorders into a punch line is only furthering this issue.

In the trailer, the way the character’s anorexia is portrayed is wildly inaccurate. Granted, I haven’t watched a full episode, but the character was smiling while eating pancakes and enthusiastically stating how much he has eaten. This is in NO WAY how anorexia works. Individuals who suffer from eating disorders are often unable to eat a meal without crying because of the extreme guilt. Obviously all cases are different but portraying eating disorders this way trivializes the life threatening illnesses that affect so many.

            So my message to ABC is this: cancel this program or eliminate this plot line. I’m sure a punch line about leukemia or Down syndrome would never fly, so this shouldn’t either. And to those who agree with me, reach out to ABC. Don’t let them get away with this. Mental illness is both underrepresented and misrepresented and we can’t let this continue.