Politics, the War on Terror, religion, censorship, celebrities, etc. You name it, Comedy Central’s South Park has tackled the issue in one of its episodes. The latest topic creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone took on: the “PC” (politically correct) culture. Political correctness refers to ” The avoidance of forms of expression that are perceived to insult groups of people who are discriminated against.” One of Parker and Stone’s more notable victims since the dawn of their show has been political correctness, and they once again dove into the issue in the episode, “Stunning and Brave.”

The Season 19 premiere, which aired on Wednesday, Sept. 16 kicked off with a new principal, “PC Principal,” making his presence felt at South Park Elementary. “I Googled South Park before I came here, and I cannot believe the stuff you’re getting away with!” PC Principal is a tall, aggressive male that gets easily offended by the students’ use of micro-aggression, or normal everyday phrases that have a negative message towards a certain group, intentional or not. Now that PC Principal is the man in charge, more and more students are receiving detention for their insensitive comments.

Kyle, one of the main characters of the show, is the first to feel the principal’s wrath. Kyle is overheard saying “Caitlyn Jenner isn’t a hero” and is sent to the principal’s office. “Well I thought we were all on board that Caitlyn Jenner is an amazing, beautiful woman who had the exquisite bravery of a butterfly flying against the wind,” said the PC Principal.

It’s a trend that we see a lot in this episode: PC Principal attempting to correct everyone’s political correctness by any means necessary. He even went as far as to nearly beating Cartman, arguably the most offensive character in television history, to death for his repeated use of micro-aggression.

Later in the episode, PC Principle runs into a group of PC college students at a local bar. They form a fraternity with a goal to rid the insensitivity in today’s society. The group attempts to shame Kyle by filling his bedroom with pigs with the word “biggit” written on them.  Ultimately the fraternity was almost destroyed by a group of students who sought to take down PC Principal. The assault was interrupted by Kyle, and out in the open finally agrees that Caitlyn Jenner is a hero. Kyle is applauded for his statement and everyone then realizes that PC Principal is here to stay.

This episode was a unique take on the issue of political correctness in today’s world. These “social justice warriors” that seek equality can sometimes go too far in trying to change one’s opinions. The acts of bullying these people may commit can be worse than the insensitivity of their targets, like PC Principal nearly killing Cartman. Also, being forced to believe in PC culture doesn’t make someone actually believe in the idea. Forcing Kyle to embrace Caitlyn Jenner as a hero isn’t the right way to go about it; at the end of the day he probably doesn’t fully believe it. One might blindly follow a PC belief in order to avoid being seen in a negative light. People should be entitled to their own opinions and not be forced to believe in what’s considered ethical.

South Park aren’t the only ones that see the PC culture as an issue. Several notable comedians, like Jerry Seinfeld, have spoken out against PC college students and have actually stopped performing at universities all-together. Even President Barack Obama, coincidentally enough, gave his take on political correctness in universities just days before the episode aired:

“It’s not just sometimes folks who are mad that colleges are too liberal that have a problem. Sometimes there are folks on college campuses who are liberal, and maybe even agree with me on a bunch of issues, who sometimes aren’t listening to the other side, and that’s a problem too. I’ve heard some college campuses where they don’t want to have a guest speaker who is too conservative or they don’t want to read a book if it has language that is offensive to African-Americans or somehow sends a demeaning signal towards women. I gotta tell you, I don’t agree with that either. I don’t agree that you, when you become students at colleges, have to be coddled and protected from different points of view. I think you should be able to — anybody who comes to speak to you and you disagree with, you should have an argument with ‘em. But you shouldn’t silence them by saying, ‘You can’t come because I’m too sensitive to hear what you have to say.’ That’s not the way we learn either.”

It’s important to bear in mind that the show doesn’t take a stance on if Caitlyn Jenner is a hero or not. The creators are informing the viewers that it is fair to see an individual like Jenner as no hero. In the grand scheme of things, people should be allowed to choose their own role models, despite what the media or PC groups label them as. If someone like Bill Gates is your role model, that’s fine. If Donald Trump is your role model, that’s cool too. But, especially with a presidential election coming next year, it’s essential that you can feel safe expressing your morals/values without the fear of being judged.