The Hallmark Channel recently pulled commercials featuring a same-sex couple kissing at their wedding which has caused a backlash from viewers as well as a #BoycottHallmark protest online. The Hallmark Channel is best known for producing a whole slew of new Christmas movies every year, featuring well-known actresses like Fuller House star Candace Cameron Bure and Mean Girls’ Lacey Chabert. Each holiday season, movies from The Hallmark Channel seem to get more and more popular, even though the channel has received flack for producing generic films which often have similar plots and storylines.

With well over a hundred titles under their belt, Hallmark Channel has absolutely cashed in on all of the hoopla and enthusiasm that surrounds the season of Christmas with their whole #CountdowntoChristmas campaign. Their films tend to be family-oriented, with the idea of a star-crossed heterosexual romance at the center of almost every movie, and it doesn’t take a keen eye to see there seems to be quite a formulaic approach to almost all of the Hallmark Channel’s Christmas movies which exist on the channel’s roster.

Now, TV Line reports that Hallmark Channel is facing a backlash from viewers after they recently pulled commercials featuring same-sex brides kissing, which has since resulted in a #BoycottHallmark protest. The ads which were pulled were part of a larger campaign from the wedding planning website Zola — only, it was just the commercials featuring the lesbian couple which were pulled, and the ads featuring a bride and groom remained on the advertorial roster. You can watch one of the TV spots which was said to be pulled below.

Zola has since pulled all of their advertising from the Hallmark Channel’s Christmas lineup, and its chief marketing officer released a statement which discussed the fact that the only difference they found between the ads the Hallmark Channel approved and the ones they pulled were the ones pulled featured a kiss between a same-sex couple getting married and that they believe “all kisses, couples and marriages are equal celebrations of love.” The removal of these commercials happened after a petition with over 44,000 signatures was created by a conservative group who took their complaints to the network. Crown Media Family Network, Hallmarks’ parent company, is responsible for the ads being removed, and they recently defended their actions by stating they do not run ads they deem “too controversial.”

It is a shame that in the year 2019, things like this are still happening. In a time where inclusivity should be at the foreground of peoples’ minds, even in regards to watch we watch on television or the ads we see in between, one would like to believe television networks like The Hallmark Channel would find the importance in such a message. In the age of social media, it’s really something to see things like the #BoycottHallmark campaign take off and establish that the opinions of the individuals who used to tune into The Hallmark Channel won’t go unnoticed.

Next: Hallmark Christmas Movies: 10 Best Actors, Ranked

Source: TV Line