As part of Disney’s “ongoing commitment to diversity and inclusion,” the powerhouse streamer has added a new list of titles to its advisory list for their “negative depictions or mistreatment of people or cultures.” Along with the previously announced movies, the new slate of films Disney has added includes Aristocats, Dumbo, Peter Pan and Swiss Family Robinson. Instead of removing the films altogether, Disney will add an advisory that reads: “This program includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it, and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together. Disney is committed to creating stories with inspirational and aspirational themes that reflect the rich diversity of the human experience around the globe.”
Each film has a specific reason behind its advisory status. According to Disney’s Stories Matter site, The Aristocats were added to the list due to one cat’s “racist caricature of East Asian peoples with exaggerated stereotypical traits such as slanted eyes and buck teeth. He sings in poorly accented English voiced by a white actor and plays the piano with chopsticks.” The crows depicted in Dumbo were flagged because of their nod to racist minstrel shows. “The leader of the group in Dumbo is Jim Crow, which shares the name of laws that enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States,” the site’s description says. “In ‘The Song of the Roustabouts,’ faceless Black workers toil away to offensive lyrics like ‘When we get our pay, we throw our money all away.’”
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In Peter Pan, the titular character along with the Lost Boys participate in dancing, wearing headdresses, and perform other exaggerated tropes making a mockery of and appropriating Native American culture. The pirates of Swiss Family Robinson are depicted in “yellow-face” or “brown-face” and speak in an unrecognizable language. Along with their “exaggerated” and “inaccurate” costumes with top-knot hairstyles, queues, robes, and overdone facial make-up and jewelry, the group serves as a misrepresentation of Middle Eastern and Asian peoples.
The reason behind Disney’s choice to keep the films up with the advisory is to “spark conversation and open dialogue on history that affects us all.” The site declares, “we also want to acknowledge that some communities have been erased or forgotten altogether, and we’re committed to giving voice to their stories as well.” However, parents can remove the considered racist films from their children’s viewing profiles.
“As we embrace each other’s stories, we embrace possibility. And that’s why we’re committed to doing the best we can to represent communities authentically. So people not only see the best in themselves, but the world can see it too,” Disney says on the site.
