Disney+ has pulled several movies, including Peter Pan, Dumbo, Aristocats, and Swiss Family Robinson, from its children’s profiles over concerns of their negative depictions and stereotypes. This comes at a time of cultural uproar over Dr. Seuss Enterprises ceasing publishing of six books that contained racist and insensitive imagery, Mr. Potato Head receiving a gender-neutral rebrand as Potato Head, and the Looney Tunes character Pepe Le Pew being axed from all future Warner Bros. projects over concerns of the normalization of rape culture.
Disney has been taking steps to cope with its checkered past since its streaming service launched in 2019. First, Disney+ included disclaimers in the descriptions of certain movies, warning audiences they “may contain outdated cultural depictions.” However, many thought this did not go far enough by simply calling the depictions, “outdated.” In response, Disney launched the "Stories Matter'' campaign to help confront its controversial past. Instead of a disclaimer in the description, certain movies received a non-skippable notice that played before the movie, warning that they include "negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures.” The advisory was sure to specify, “These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now.”
Now, Disney+ has decided to remove access to certain classic films on children’s profiles altogether, citing concerns of negative depictions and stereotypes. However, adult profiles will still be able to access the titles on Disney+ preceded by a content warning. On the "Stories Matter" section of their website, Disney provided an explanation as to why each title was removed:
The Aristocats - The cat is depicted as a 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. This portrayal reinforces the "perpetual foreigner" stereotype, while the film also features lyrics that mock the Chinese language and culture such as "Shanghai, Hong Kong, Egg Foo Young. Fortune cookie always wrong."
Dumbo - The crows and musical number pay homage to racist minstrel shows, where white performers with blackened faces and tattered clothing imitated and ridiculed enslaved Africans on Southern plantations. 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. 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."
Peter Pan - The film portrays Native people in a stereotypical manner that reflects neither the diversity of Native peoples nor their authentic cultural traditions. It shows them speaking in an unintelligible language and repeatedly refers to them as "redskins," an offensive term. Peter and the Lost Boys engage in dancing, wearing headdresses and other exaggerated tropes, a form of mockery and appropriation of Native peoples' culture and imagery.
Swiss Family Robinson - The pirates who antagonize the Robinson family are portrayed as a stereotypical foreign menace. Many appear in "yellow face" or "brown face" and are costumed in an exaggerated and inaccurate manner with top knot hairstyles, queues, robes and overdone facial make-up and jewelry, reinforcing their barbarism and "otherness." They speak in an indecipherable language, presenting a singular and racist representation of Asian and Middle Eastern peoples.
While many may jump to the conclusion these titles are being “canceled,” this is not entirely accurate since the movies remain on Disne Stereotypey+ for adult profiles. Instead, this is an attempt by Disney to protect younger viewers from racist depictions and stereotypes. Therefore, kid profiles, which are for those under seven, will not be able to stream the films listed above. This move by Disney makes sense since kids under seven might not be able to read or fully understand the disclaimers played before the film.
Given the current cultural reckoning regarding negative and racist depictions in film, television, and children’s books, it is no surprise that Disney+ is taking measures to prevent its younger viewers from internalizing negative and outdated messaging. While it does not excuse their content, Disney’s Dumbo and Peter Pan were made in the 1940s and 1950s respectively, a time when these negative depictions and unfortunate stereotypes were much more accepted. Removing these titles is the latest attempt by Disney to reconcile its troubled past and spark conversation about important history.
Source: Comic Book