It looks like Cartoon Network's beloved, queer AF, and history-making animated series Steven Universe just got even more inclusive of LGBTQIA+ people!
In a public service announcement about self esteem and self image on social media posted to Cartoon Network's Twitter and Instagram accounts, fan-favorite character Stevonnie (the badass fusion between the titular character Steven and his best friend Connie Maheswaran), can been seen showing viewers their Instagram profile.
If you look closely at their bio, Stevonnie lists their pronouns (they/them) as well as their identities, which include being intersex and nonbinary!
For those of you who don't know what the term intersex means, Planned Parenthood defines it as "a general term used for a variety of conditions in which a person is born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit the typical definitions of female or male. Sometimes an intersex person is assigned a female or male sex at birth through surgery, if external genitals are not obviously male or female."
PP continues:
"Being intersex is a naturally occurring variation in humans, and isn’t a medical problem. It’s also more common than most people realize. It’s hard to know exactly how many people are intersex, but estimates suggest that about 1 in 100 people born in the U.S. is intersex."
Although there's more LGBTQIA+ representation on TV than ever before, there are still very, very, very few confirmed intersex characters in media, so the Cartoon Network and Steven Universe teams taking the time to confirm this part of Stevonnie's identity is a major step forward for representation! And during Pride Month, no less! Just when we thought we couldn't love Steven Universe any more than we already do!!
Watch Stevonnie's PSA in the video below!
