Pennsylvania Governor Joins Campaign To Have Amish Mafia Nixed
Cast of Discovery Channel’s “Amish Mafia.”
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett and other elected state officials have signed a statement asking the Discovery Channel to drop its series Amish Mafia.
The reality show, according to Discovery’s website, follows a group of Amish men “who protect and maintain peace and order within the Amish community in Lancaster.”
An ABC News report states:
The statement says Amish Mafia is a “bigoted portrayal” of the religious sect and misrepresents the Amish in Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County as a “crime-ridden culture.”
The statement is signed by 18 elected officials, including congressmen, state senators, state representatives and Lancaster’s mayor. Pennsylvania’s two U.S. senators signed a similar statement.
The petition against the series was organized by Respect Amish, a group based out of Lancaster who assert that Amish Mafia and similar series about Amish culture “are blasting the airwaves with negative and inaccurate portrayals of Plain societies.”
Discovery maintains that the characters on the show are “real-life Amish.” They have declined to comment on the petition.
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