War Propaganda at Chuck E Cheese

Pizza palace targeting children with pro-war propaganda and Coke ads

just when you thought it was safe to take your kids for pizza and video games...

Gloria Mattera, Green Party candidate for Brooklyn Borough President, criticized Forest City Ratner today for bringing Chuck E. Cheese to Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn. The Texas pizza chain is airing a Department of Defense promotional clip on their video screens showing military planes dropping gifts instead of bombs to what appear to be grateful Iraqi children. They are also showing the character "Chuck E. Cheese" in an extended ad for Coke products.

"In addition to unhealthy menu items, Chuck E. Cheese is targeting Brooklyn children with pro-war propaganda that inaccurately portrays the war in Iraq as a benefit to Iraqi children," said Mattera. "In fact, more than 24,000 Iraqi civilians, many of them children, have been reported killed since the invasion began, with many more civilian deaths unreported. It's disgraceful for a corporation to attempt to manipulate children by including these images with carton characters and children's video."

Chuck E. Cheese has four locations in New York City, including Raner's Atlantic Terminal shopping mall at 139 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn.

"Almost half of the children in New York City's public elementary schools are considered overweight," added Mattera. "With the support of Marty Markowitz, Forest City Ratner is planning to bring many more corporate interests such as Chuck E. Cheese to the Nets arena project. If Markowitz really cares about "lightening up" Brooklyn and improving children's health, he should not be encouraging this sort of development. Out-of-state fast-food chains take business away from our locally owned businesses and the profits go back to their home states. As Brooklyn Borough President, I will support responsible development that takes into account the needs of our residents and brings money back into the community.

Let Chuck E Cheese what you think of their policy of showing DOD recruitment videos to impressionable young kids on via their feedback form.