This isn’t just a problem in fiction
As a trans person whose initial transition was delayed by parents and loved ones assuming that I had been pushed into being trans by pressure from others, I got major vibes from this scene of the persistent fears that LGBT people force their lifestyles on unwilling kids.
When I first came out as trans to my parents, they wanted to know everything about every person I was talking to regarding my transition. Was my therapist gay or trans? Could they be pressuring me into transition because it’s what they thought was right for me, not because I actually wanted it? Did I come out to friends who were LGBT? Did they think it was cool that I had come out as trans? Could trying to fit in with expectations of others have been the cause for me being trans?
LGBT people don’t respect your boundaries, the game implies, and will force their desires on your unwilling kids
My parents were desperately looking around for an LGBT person who had entered my life and tricked me into thinking I was trans, because that would be a solvable situation. It would be easier to address than the reality: that I was actually trans, and had come to that understanding of myself without outside influence.
Those fears are common. I’m not the only LGBT person with a family who assumed that part of my identity was forced upon me. It’s used as a way to discredit someone’s lived experience. It’s used by society to handwave away our fights for rights, because we’re not really suffering; we just want to “seem cool” or “fit in.” It’s used to suggest that LGBT people shouldn’t be around children, and that children shouldn’t be taught LGBT people exist, because it will cause them to be tricked into becoming LGBT themselves.
This scene is the distillation of that fear — the idea that LGBT people will swoop down on your children, and force them to be something they are not. It’s the idea that LGBT individuals are predators, looking for people to brainwash to “our side,” like pawns. It’s not just a failed joke; it’s a situation that seems to justify many people’s fears.
Persona 5 Royal is a fantastic game.
You can read my full review here, where I note that the gameplay changes and story additions take an already successful experience and make it even better. These few missteps stand out so much because they take place in a game that gets just about everything else right.