Leslie Knope, the government-idealist and feminist hero of the hit show Parks & Recreation, is perhaps one of the most beloved characters in recent years. And it's well known that the show's creator, Michael Schur, is an outspoken liberal and gun lobby critic.
So, what was exactly the National Rifle Association thinking when it used a GIF of Knope in a tweet thanking their spokeswoman Dana Loesch? Parks & Rec is arguably the least appropriate show for the NRA to co-opt — and the team behind the fictional town of Pawnee, IN made it abundantly clear to the gun rights organization.
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Here's what happened: Wednesday night, Loesch appeared at a CNN town hall with students who survived last week's shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, FL, and other members of the community. The conservative commentator, known for her outrageous NRATV online videos attacking everyone from media organizations to the FBI, apparently needed a quick morale boost after being grilled by students, teachers, and grieving parents.
.@DLoesch thank you for being the voice of over 5 Million #NRA members. pic.twitter.com/WDz7vujXfM
— NRA (@NRA) February 22, 2018
But Schur, using his Twitter handle @KenTremendous, was not having it — and neither was Amy Poehler, who played Knope for seven seasons.
"Hi, please take this down. I would prefer you not use a GIF from a show I worked on to promote your pro-slaughter agenda," Schur tweeted. "Also, Amy isn't on twitter, but she texted me a message: 'Can you tweet the NRA for me and tell them I said fuck off?'"
Hi, please take this down. I would prefer you not use a GIF from a show I worked on to promote your pro-slaughter agenda.
— Ken Tremendous (@KenTremendous) February 22, 2018
Also, Amy isn't on twitter, but she texted me a message: "Can you tweet the NRA for me and tell them I said fuck off?" https://t.co/YXSdzCdvdd
Actor Adam Scott, who played Knope's husband/human disaster Ben Wyatt, and Nick Offerman, who played Knope's boss/libertarian Ron Swanson, both weighed in with their own tweets telling the gun rights organization to stay away from using the character.
Scott tweeted, "Hey @nra please stay the fuck away from Leslie Knope."
Meanwhile, Offerman made clear that the beloved character didn't represent anything that the NRA stands for. He wrote, adding an American flag emoji at the end: "@NRA @DLoesch our good-hearted show and especially our Leslie Knope represent the opposite of your pro-slaughter agenda - take it down and also please eat shit."
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Hey @nra please stay the fuck away from Leslie Knope. https://t.co/Lr2HCeN7qp
— Adam Scott (@mradamscott) February 22, 2018
.@NRA @DLoesch our good-hearted show and especially our Leslie Knope represent the opposite of your pro-slaughter agenda - take it down and also please eat shit. ?? https://t.co/Ar2YF4yoic
— Nick Offerman (@Nick_Offerman) February 22, 2018
As of Thursday morning, the NRA’s tweet was still up, which made the idealistic Leslie Knope be in jarring contrast with endless tweets of firearms.