CPAC Bans ‘Sesame Street’ Characters From Attending Conference

• Sesame Street characters are banned from the upcoming Conservative Political Action Conference.
• The ban comes after conservatives criticized Big Bird for announcing he was vaccinated. 
• Conservatives said the announcement was an attempt to indoctrinate kids. 

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The Conservative Political Action Conference has banned Sesame Street characters from attending their upcoming conference in Florida, citing Big Bird’s endorsement of COVID-19 vaccines. 

In a series of tweets, CPAC said the Muppets were not welcome at the conference, which is scheduled for February 2022 in Orlando, Florida.

One tweet featured the hashtag #notinvited on a picture featuring Elmo. Bert and Ernie were also not welcome. 

—CPAC 2022 (@CPAC) November 18, 2021

“Sesame Street” has been a hot topic for conservatives in recent weeks after Big Bird tweeted that he was vaccinated against COVID-19 earlier this month. 

“I got the COVID-19 vaccine today! My wing is feeling a little sore, but it’ll give my body an extra protective boost that keeps me and others healthy,” Big Bird wrote in the tweet. 

Republicans like Texas Sen. Ted Cruz criticized the tweet and claimed the children’s character was being used to indoctrinate kids. “Government propaganda … for your 5 year old!” Cruz said in a tweet. 

On November 14, the kid’s show announced that Ji-Young would be its first-ever Asian-American muppet. CPAC President Matt Schlapp called to defund “Sesame Street” producer PBS over the introduction of the character.

“What race is Ernie is Bert? You are insane PBS and we should stop funding you,” Schlapp said in a tweet responding to a report introducing the new character. 

CPAC, Sesame Workshop, the show’s producer, and PBS did not respond to Insider’s request for comment at the time of publication.