News Splash Mountain retheme to Princess and the Frog - Tiana's Bayou Adventure

MagicHappens1971

Well-Known Member

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lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
And let's who don't because the ride is offensive to them as a descendant of enslaved people. Do we ignore that too? Plus the ride isn't being torn down, but rethemed.
And what of the indigenous people of vast swaths of the Americas, including California and Florida, who were subjugated, enslaved and killed by those who brought Carnival to the Americas? The focus of the new ride is getting to a colonialist celebration.
 

LittleBuford

Well-Known Member
The focus of the new ride is getting to a colonialist celebration.
This belongs to the same category of argument as "But the current ride is a celebration of African American folklore", which is to say that it ignores the more immediate associations of the IPs in question in order to make it seem as if the retheme is a step backwards in terms of representation and inclusivity.
 

GimpYancIent

Well-Known Member
What? New Ride? Splash (the ride) will still be Splash (the ride) i.e. a log flume ride. This entire back and forth has been all about the retheme, AA's and window dressing. The actual ride (the log flume) is offensive to no one. Personally I am looking forward to see how Dr. Facilier is depicted.
 

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
This belongs to the same category of argument as "But the current ride is a celebration of African American folklore", which is to say that it ignores the more immediate associations of the IPs in question in order to make it seem as if the retheme is a step backwards in terms of representation and inclusivity.
The immediate associations? So because many don’t immediately associate Mardi Gras with the colonization of the Americas it is an okay to romanticize?

Something doesn’t have to be a step backwards to fail to meet the standards it somehow suddenly represents.
 

Disney Maddux

Well-Known Member
I seriously don't know what to believe anymore. I don't know if all this talk of the WDW retheme not happening is an actual possibility or if this is just a typical case of wishful thinking becoming so big it turns into a rumor. So how about I narrow down the choices?

  • Retheme is happening for all parks. Disneyland and WDW to Princess and the frog, Tokyo into different IP.
  • Retheme is happening for Disneyland and WDW, Tokyo is staying the same.
  • Retheme is happening for Disneyland only, WDW and Tokyo stay the same.
  • Retheme isn't happening at all, Splash Mountain is here to stay.
 

LittleBuford

Well-Known Member
So because many don’t immediately associate Mardi Gras with the colonization of the Americas it is an okay to romanticize?
Perhaps there will come a time when the new theme's association with Mardi Gras is considered to be as problematic as the current theme's association with a film that romanticises plantation life. That time isn't now, however, and I think it makes more sense to address existing debates and concerns than to worry about hypothetical controversies that are nowhere on the horizon.
 

EagleScout610

Always causin' some kind of commotion downstream
Premium Member
Simply put, they can’t just ignore it and leave things as is. Not so long as their only film adaptation of Brer Rabbit is the 1946 controversial film. But they can’t just shun it and pretend like it never existed either. You’re just delaying the inevitable. It will likely catch up to you at some point.
d5a50475c0a158364ebb8cdf325795dc.jpg
 

The Aracuan Bird

Well-Known Member
In Reconstruction era south, plantations were typically broken into parcels by the owner and worked by indebted sharecroppers. That is how it worked. Who, yes, leased the land. But they also had to lease the tools, seeds, clothing, and were typically tied to the land the rest of their life due to predatory interest rates and the inability to sell their crop to anyone but the plantation owner. They were not employees, nor were they independent as the simplification of saying they leased the land would make it sound.

And yes, stories should be saved. Amazingly, there are many ways of doing it besides through a log flume ride. Here's one, buy a book of African American folktales (believe it or not they have been written down in other collections since Chandler Harris), and read them to children in your life. This will keep these stories alive, and actually the stories, not mascots of a theme park ride.
I recently purchased Julius Lester’s version of the stories. Retelling of the classic tales (some of which are in the ride) but without the negative stereotyping found in the film or the Joel Chandler Harris version. It’s been a great read so far.

But had I not done some digging, I wouldn’t have even known about it. Most people won’t. For a very long time, people are going to look at Brer Rabbit as “that racist character from the movie Disney banned”. There will be a stigma, possible for the rest of our lives, because of how Disney handled things.

What becomes of the ride isn’t the issue. It’s what comes next. How do they choose to represent these stories they took? If they choose not to, they leave it with the negative stigma.
 

dsinclair

Active Member
I recently purchased Julius Lester’s version of the stories. Retelling of the classic tales (some of which are in the ride) but without the negative stereotyping found in the film or the Joel Chandler Harris version. It’s been a great read so far.

But had I not done some digging, I wouldn’t have even known about it. Most people won’t. For a very long time, people are going to look at Brer Rabbit as “that racist character from the movie Disney banned”. There will be a stigma, possible for the rest of our lives, because of how Disney handled things.

What becomes of the ride isn’t the issue. It’s what comes next. How do they choose to represent these stories they took? If they choose not to, they leave it with the negative stigma.
Completely agree. And a theme park ride isn't the place to navigate this space and rehabilitate these stories.
 

Sharon&Susan

Well-Known Member
Supporting the retheme is one thing, but now they’re trying to erase it from existence. Something is missing here, can you find out what?
Journey Into Your Imagination sponsored by the fine Kodak corporation?
 

jt04

Well-Known Member
It's not going to happen. The Br'er characters will be erased by Disney, I can guarantee it.

Likely right. But it would be refreshing if they confronted the issues directly and educated more people. And it wouldn't have to just focus on the past at Disney but could examine the entire past of the entertainment industry. And where it is currently. Disney can and should lead here. As they already are in many ways.
 

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