The Death Camp of Tolerance
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| "The Death Camp of Tolerance" | |
|---|---|
| South Park episode | |
 Mr. Garrison introduces Mr. Slave |
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| Episode no. | Season 6 Episode 14 |
| Written by | Trey Parker |
| Directed by | Trey Parker |
| Production no. | 614 |
| Original airdate | November 20, 2002 |
| Season 6 episodes | |
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| ← Season 5 | Season 7 → |
| List of South Park episodes | |
"The Death Camp of Tolerance" is episode 14 of season 6 of the Comedy Central series South Park. It was originally broadcast on November 20, 2002. It's the final episode to feature Tweek among the main cast in season 6 and the only one to feature both Tweek and Butters in the main cast.
[edit] Plot
In this episode, Mr. Garrison is promoted from his position as the kindergarten teacher to teach the fourth grade. He had been previously demoted for admitting to being gay. However, realizing that getting fired for being gay could allow him to sue the school for millions, he decides, along with his S&M partner, Mr. Slave to perform outrageous sex acts in the classroom.
The children complain about Mr. Garrison's inappropriate activities, but their parents mistakenly think they are complaining about his homosexuality. The parents believe that the children are being intolerant and send them to the Museum of Tolerance, where all sorts of gags occur, such as the children going on a ride through the "Tunnel of Prejudice", where speakers project all sorts of slur words at them and waxworks of minorities in stereotypical poses. The tour guide lectures the children about how Cartman being fat is his own life choice, before a smoker is spotted outside the museum and the tour guide and the parents lay into him in the same way they attempted to teach the children not to do with minorities.
Mr. Garrison notes that there have been no complaints about his behaviour to the school, so he steps up his campaign to get fired for being gay by shoving a gerbil named Lemmiwinks into Mr. Slave's ass. The children mention their discomfort to Chef, who initally chastises them before asking why they were so uncomfortable - and after telling the principal what had actually been done, he is ordered to attend a tolerance seminar for not accepting Garrison for who he is. As a result of all of this, the children refuse to attend class with him, so their parents send them, at Mr. Mackey's suggestion, to an Auschwitz-like "Tolerance Camp" in which the camp leader speaks in a faux-German accent and is referred to as "mein Führer". The camp uses arts and crafts, strict tactics, and painful labor to teach children tolerance.
Back at school, Mr. Garrison is set to receive the "Courageous Teacher Award" for overcoming adversity. Frustrated that he has not been fired, he redoubles his efforts and, on the advice of Mr. Slave, he plans to make a show of his ceremony to show the parents "what a demented faggot he is", theorizing that the parents will be shocked and call for his sacking themselves if they see his behavior. Meanwhile, Lemmiwinks traverses the regions of Mr. Slave's digestive system, receiving advice from three animal spirits who have been killed while trying to escape after Mr. Slave shoved them up his ass(a Frog King, a Sparrow Prince and the Catata Fish respectively).
At the awards ceremony, Mr. Garrison is presented the Award. He appears with his lover in an extremely stereotypical and flamboyantly gay manner. Although Mr. Slave's prediction is correct and the parents are indeed shocked by the behavior, they cannot bring themselves to criticize it, as they are in the Museum of Tolerance and fear being branded "intolerant". When people continue to call Garrison and Mr. Slave "courageous" for his actions he finally breaks down and screams at them, telling them that tolerance of something one hates is not the same as acceptance of it as good. He goes on to say that tolerating his homosexuality should not mean that he can do things that are obviously inappropriate in front of his students. He begs to be fired so he can collect on a discrimination lawsuit. Principal Victoria says she has a better idea. The parents apologize to their now-malnourished and emaciated kids, who have been released from Tolerance Camp, and tell them that the children should have informed them about Mr. Garrison's behavior, having ignored the childrens' attempts throughout the episode to do so.
Principal Victoria concludes that Mr. Garrison and Mr. Slave are "obviously intolerant of their own behavior", and says she is sending them to the Tolerance Camp so they will accept themselves. Mr. Slave thinks of the horrible torture as "kind of fun". He suddenly coughs up Lemmiwinks, who has freed the spirits of other animals who died inside Mr. Slave's body. They appear to Lemmiwinks, and crown him the Gerbil King. Lemmiwinks exits the scene with the Ballad of Lemmiwinks playing over the credits. Lemmiwinks' travels are a parody of the 1977 animated film The Hobbit, including the Ballad of Lemmiwinks and the riddle song.
[edit] Further reading
- Gournelos, Ted (May 2009). "Puppets, Slaves, and Sex Changes: Mr. Garrison and South Park's Performative Sexuality". Television & New Media (SAGE Publications) 10 (3): 270–293. doi:. http://tvn.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/10/3/270. Retrieved 2009-10-31.
- Anderson, Brian (2005). South Park conservatives: the revolt against liberal media bias. Regnery Publishing. pp. 78–80. ISBN 9780895260192. http://books.google.com/books?id=EOt26lBpC9wC&pg=PA78. Retrieved 2009-10-31.
- Puar, Jasbir (2007). Terrorist assemblages: homonationalism in queer times. Duke University Press. p. 70–76. ISBN 9780822341147. http://books.google.com/books?id=_v8tbxwv7y0C&pg=PA70. Retrieved 2009-10-31.
| Preceded by “The Return of the Fellowship of the Ring to the Two Towers” |
South Park episodes | Followed by “The Biggest Douche in the Universe” |
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