Debunking "evil Disney" accusations

[Californian Elitist]

Because, I already typed it out over there.

And that race only matters to racists.

What do you mean race only matters to racists?

 

[englanddg]

What do you mean race only matters to racists?

Exactly what I said.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Exactly what I said.

Okay.

 

[englanddg]

Okay.

Meryl Streep Blasts Walt Disney at National Board of Review Dinner

Start there and read on.

We can continue when you are finished so we have a solid foothold for discussion.

 

[Californian Elitist]

Meryl Streep Blasts Walt Disney at National Board of Review Dinner

Start there and read on.

We can continue when you are finished so we have a solid foothold for discussion.

I read it.

 

[englanddg]

I read it.

So, I shouldn't need to explain anything.

 

[Californian Elitist]

So, I shouldn't need to explain anything.

Okay.

 

[luv]

What do you mean race only matters to racists?

I think what he means is that people who aren't racists just don't care about anyone's race. They don't care much about anyone's racism, either. That's how I took it, anyway.

If you think about it, why would race matter to anyone who wasn't a racist?

 

[Californian Elitist]

I think what he means is that people who aren't racists just don't care about anyone's race. They don't care much about anyone's racism, either. That's how I took it, anyway.

If you think about it, why would race matter to anyone who wasn't a racist?

Yes, I understand.

 

[FettFan]

Floyd Norman's response:
http://floydnormancom.squarespace.com/blog/2014/1/8/sophies-poor-choice

 

[Florida_is_hot]

Here is an idea, how about thinking about not defending a man that has been dead almost 40 years.
Who cares?
Walt Disney is gone move on.
Yes films of the 30s and 40s have content that will never pass the 21th century censor but once again who cares move on.

 

[Matt_Black]

Here is an idea, how about thinking about not defending a man that has been dead almost 40 years.
Who cares?
Walt Disney is gone move on.
Yes films of the 30s and 40s have content that will never pass the 21th century censor but once again who cares move on.

Well, it's similar to other arguments. Mark Twain has been dead even longer, but you do have to bring up him and his intentions when the inevitable Huckleberry Finn debate sparks again. Walt may be dead, but as an artist, his creations outlive him. Sometimes, you HAVE to discuss the man.

 

[ford91exploder]

Our nation isn't struggling with racism. It's struggling with people who, for either moral superiority, sheer stupidity, or selfish or financial / political gain seek to find racism in everything.

I'd rank Financial/Political gain as #1 and Moral Superiority as #2

 

[ford91exploder]

Are you saying racism no longer exists in the US?

Racism definitely exists in the US and it's flames are fanned by race-baiters on one side, skinheads and the like on the other side. Racism is racism I reject entirely the proposition that its a White on $OTHER_RACE phenomenon.

And you have NEVER experienced racism until you hit Japan. The Japanese well their attitudes toward the gaijin are legendary.

The big problem with racism is it allows you to dehumanize people different from you. From that comes bloodshed.

 

[Florida_is_hot]

Samuel Clemens has been dead longer, who care if he was a racist move on.
Some Presidents (at least one)own slaves they are long dead .... move on.

FYI I never read or plan on reading Mark Twain, does not interest me.
Though Samuel Clemens was person with great quotes which I use on occasion.

 

[FettFan]

Here is an idea, how about thinking about not defending a man that has been dead almost 40 years.
Who cares?
Walt Disney is gone move on.
Yes films of the 30s and 40s have content that will never pass the 21th century censor but once again who cares move on.

You're obviously not into history.


EDIT -- Serious answer: It's a matter of slandering someone whose friends, coworkers, and family are still around.
Not only are you disrespecting the deceased, you are also disrespecting the memories of the survivors.

 

[Matt_Black]

Samuel Clemens has been dead longer, who care if he was a racist move on.
Some Presidents (at least one)own slaves they are long dead .... move on.

FYI I never read or plan on reading Mark Twain, does not interest me.
Though Samuel Clemens was person with great quotes which I use on occasion.

Well, I was using that as an example. Anytime you take a book or film or what have you in any sort of critical perspective, you should consider the author, at least somewhat.

 

[Fable McCloud]

I think Disney and other animation companies are guilty of using archetypes and stereotypes without necessarily thinking them through. It's not being racist so much as using characters in ways that society either doesn't understand or views as negative.

I'm not African American, but I was glad to see a princess with a different skin tone and felt saddened that she didn't get more screen time as a person. As a side note, I do love the name Maddy, because it could have been short for Madison, which is a name I like, but I'm glad she ended up with Tiana.

Also, Princess and the Frog takes place in New Orleans, in the 1920's, am I right? If that's the case, the Civil Rights Movement had not happened yet, and most places were still segregated. I think Tiana being so close with a rich white girl is actually pretty unlikely. I'm glad, because it made Charlotte a really interesting side character, but in all actuality would that have even been possible? Wasn't the South notoriously hard on blacks? Would they have allowed for intergration in the restaurants?

I also took a Native American Literature class in college, and we talked about media portrayal. Someone brought up Peter Pan, and then Pocahontas. I think Peter Pan may be viewed negatively now because people are over sensitive, when really it was just how things were done when the film was released. I'm 28 and I totally played Cowboys and Indians as a kid. Also, in Pocahontas they did better by hiring actual actors of Native American heritage and modeling the characters a bit better, but they corrupted the story in the process.

In Lady and the Tramp we have Italian stereotypes, and in the Artistocats we have a very Chinese cat. I'm French. Did I find Lumiere's over the top, Maurice Chevalier accent to be offensive? Nope. It was an archetype. The French, debonair, suave charmer. These reflect what was considered PC at the time they were made.

The Nostalgia Critic, Doug Walker, recently reviewed Song of the South for his Disney-cember month, and he points out that the film is not outright racist. It can be viewed that way if your mind is set so, but mostly it;s a film that pieces together some fables told by Uncle Remus, (who's probably just happy to be alive after the Reconstruction and definitely happy to have a job and money) with some nice animated segments and some boring live action sequences stuck in there as well.

So maybe Disney had some bad moments. So people were offended. We learn on this forum that anything can set people off. As long as we just remember that Disney movies are meant to entertain, we can watch them with open minds. If you see something you don't like, you can either let it go, or complain about on a forum.

 

[Walt Disney1955]

Floyd Norman's response:
http://floydnormancom.squarespace.com/blog/2014/1/8/sophies-poor-choice

I always like Floyd Norman's take on things. It is always good to hear a man who met Walt Disney and who worked under Walt Disney. I'll take his word on things over ones that never met him such as Meryl Streep. If Julie Andrews would blast him then that makes a little more sense since she worked under him. But she hasn't. Sometimes in life we like to re-write history and take a person who did so many great things for people and put him under scrutiny. We live in a sick world.

 

[Fable McCloud]

I always like Floyd Norman's take on things. It is always good to hear a man who met Walt Disney and who worked under Walt Disney. I'll take his word on things over ones that never met him such as Meryl Streep. If Julie Andrews would blast him then that makes a little more sense since she worked under him. But she hasn't. Sometimes in life we like to re-write history and take a person who did so many great things for people and put him under scrutiny. We live in a sick world.

It's like that saying "don't judge someone until you know them." I totally agree. We can speculate about what he may or may not have been like, but we will never know Walt personally, so who are we to judge? He gave the world a legacy of entertainment, and that is what we all should remember about him.