Sabrina Carpenter, Franklin the Turtle in tiff with Trump administration
A young turtle from a Canadian children’s book series is caught in an international feud after the U.S. Department of Defense used the character in a cartoon about the assassination of suspected drug dealers.
The publisher of the “Franklin the Turtle” books is criticizing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for a social media post showing the beloved children’s character shooting suspected criminals.
“We strongly condemn any disparaging, violent or unauthorized use of Franklin’s name or likeness,” publisher Kids Can Press said.
The publisher is not alone. Sabrina Carpenter blasted the White House on Tuesday for using her song in a video about the deportation of migrants, calling it “evil and disgusting.”
“Never implicate me or my music for your inhumane agenda,” the singer posted.
The White House used the pop star’s music in a Dec. 1 social media post showing a compilation of ICE operations and captioned it as a lyric from her song Juno.
In Franklin’s case, the drawing Hegseth posted on social media is a fake book cover depicting Franklin in a military helicopter firing a heavy weapon at alleged drug boats. The fake headline reads: “Franklin targets narco terrorists.”
The image comes amid a series of US strikes against suspected Venezuelan drug boats since early September. The Trump administration claims it is acting in self-defense by attacking ships carrying illicit drugs to the United States.
Hegseth captioned the post: “For your Christmas wish list…”
Franklin, the 6-year-old cartoon turtle, is known for tackling everyday challenges, from learning to ride a bike to his first sleepover.
He is originally the main character in the Canadian children’s book “Franklin the Turtle” and has become the star of numerous television shows, films, video games and live-action productions.
“Franklin the Turtle is a beloved Canadian icon who has inspired generations of children and stands for kindness, empathy and inclusion,” publisher Kids Can Press said in its statement, adding that such violent depiction “directly contradicts these values.”
“We doubt that Franklin the Turtle wants to include the drug cartels (…) or praise the kindness and empathy of narcoterrorists,” Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said Monday evening.
The artists credited with creating Franklin and authoring his books did not respond to BBC requests for comment.
In September, Pokémon said it did not authorize the use of its theme song and other imagery in a video of an ICE deportation raid released by the U.S. government.
British singer Jess Glynne also criticized White House officials in July after using a viral Jet2holiday ad featuring her song in a video promoting deportations.
