Research Paper: Disney a Racist?

Disney was not this sweet harmless filmmaker that people may make him out to be, because it turns out he had a dark side and was a very glaring racist. Disney films were a part of many children’s childhoods, but many of the movies we remember watching as a kid are now regarded as unacceptable, prejudiced, and downright offensive. We see these films coming out during World War 2 and the beginning of the Civil Rights movement. The Civil Rights Movement was a time of change and was created to help end racial discrimination, and during this time African Americans would fight for their rights and sometimes even for their life or the lives of others. In the 1940’s and 1950’s, countless Disney films recklessly used racial stereotypes to negatively characterize minorities in films which shows how people were being discriminated ultimately impacting the way people feel and think about these films today, Disney recognizes how this was harmful and now is trying to correct this by putting a warning at the beginning of some of these films which cannot be skipped.

In these films, characters are being negatively portrayed because of their racial background which reveals how Walt Disney was very racist. In the Lady and the Tramp “Its Siamese cats, Si and Am, are drawn with slanted eyes and they speak with a stereotypical Asian accent and are also portrayed as villainous and sneaky” (George). Walt Disney and his producers of these films were very biased and prejudiced and tended to insult his characters through characterization and symbolism. “By using exaggerated tones and facial features we know that the producers were making fun of and taunting those of a particular race and social class. “Song of the South,” for example, premiered just after World War II when African American soldiers were returning home after fighting for the freedoms of all Americans only to face humiliating Jim Crow laws, segregation and lynching’s” (Tinubu). Rather than writing a movie about the African American soldiers being heroes the producers choose to be unlawful and show the problems they faced when they returned home. Segregation, Jim Crow Laws, and lynching’s were all very common post WWII, and during this time especially we see that African Americans were being treated unfairly, which shows people how racism is still an issue. The audience of these films can see this by the clothes characters would wear and overall, just how that person was being treated differently from the rest.

Disney filmmakers have begun to realize that their representations of certain characters are racist and have started to examine that what they have done is wrong, and how they have been able to change some of their ways. “For children of color, it could lead to self-esteem issues, Dr. Shah said. “They may have a sense of, ‘That’s how I am?” he said” (Pietsch). If children were to continue to watch these films today and see those racial portrayals, they might think that is just how they are or will be. Negatively thinking about how you are different from the majority just because of the color of their skin impacts the way you think. Other people might think that these characterizations are normal when they are just stereotypes and make jokes about them blindly in the future which can damage others and how they may view themselves. “Disney said in June that it would remake its Splash Mountain theme park ride, which includes characters and songs from the 1946 musical “Song of the Southc ( Pietsch). Filmmakers and producers did not know how large of an impact these films will have on children and how they would take it, so we see they have made changes in Disney streaming services and in certain rides at Disneyland like Splash Mountain because they did not want people to perceive Disney as being racist. In many of these 1940s and 50’s Disney films, certain characters of colors or characters were perceived as being different. African Americans were almost never the main characters which makes them seem like they were nothing more than an afterthought. Even if they were the main character, they would never highlight the positive parts of that race the film would only show how they were being mistreated.

Disney + has put warnings at the beginning of certain Disney films to help create an open environment for people to talk about the problems of the 40’s and 50’s, their messages need to be clearly emphasized and understood so that they can create everlasting change. “The 12-second disclaimer, which cannot be skipped, tells viewers, in part: “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” (Pietsch). 

Association is seen throughout the warnings on these films since it explains to the audience that these stereotypes were incorrect which associates those films as wrong. Since children are the main target of these warnings those messages can really help them learn from the past and make sure they are more welcoming and inclusive in the future. Pathos is also depicted in these warnings because they point out the negative stereotypes and mistreatment of people or cultures that we see, which evokes feelings of anger and sadness. People need to be well informed and aware of these racial stereotypes that took place throughout these films considering that these mistreatments did not just happen on the screen. “However, the studio is not making every movie from their vault accessible to Disney+ subscribers. In keeping with company policy dating to 2011, the studio’s controversial 1946 film “Song of the South” will not have a home on the platform. And a scene from the 1941 animated classic, “Dumbo,” featuring a crow named Jim Crow, will be deleted from the streaming version of the film” (Tinubu). Even though we have warnings of some of these films Disney still chooses to gloss over some of his messages by hiding and removing some of those films from the world. This reveals to us that Disney was ashamed of himself and did not want people to see him as a racist white man who only cared about one side of the story, so he tried to get rid of some of the evidence.

Disney invoked negative feelings from his audiences especially in his films during the 1940s and 50s which caused filmmakers and producers to change the way people view him by adding 12 second warnings to their films and changing certain parts of Disney rides so they would not appear to be racist. The minorities of these films especially African Americans felt impacted by these films because even though some of them had gone off to war and fought to save the lives of others when they returned home from war, they were facing racial discrimination and segregation. Many young children have grown up watching Disney films but what parents did not know is how much of a negative impact it could have on their children. Children can become brainwashed by these films and think it is ok to pass on those values to other people which is why they need to be reminded that it is wrong to stereotype minorities like seen in the films. In order to learn from these films people must create open environments to talk about change and how the community can do better. Although Disney is a beloved filmmaker to people of all ages, people tend to miss and overlook his racist personality. So, before you go watch one of these films make sure you are aware that those stereotypes wrong and remind yourself that they negatively impacted the way people thought.