Cultural Appropriation in Disney Movies
Disney is like a rich kid in a candy store-who is constantly visiting different countries all around the world but not really appreciated what they have to offer. The studio has travelled over six continents with its beautiful animated classics.
The Dumbo Case
In the movie ‘Dumbo’, a group of crows sit on a branch and one of them is smoking a cigar. They laugh as well as sing and dance and make fun of Dumbo, who sadly sits there listening.The lead singer is called Jim Crow, it is a reference to the infamous Jim Crow laws that has enforced racial segregation in the South of United States as well as racial depiction of African- American slaves.
Cultural Appropriation for Profit
A lot of examples of cultural appropriation- the inappropriate adoption of elements of a given culture or identity can be found in Disney films, which incorporates or alters elements of another culture for entertainment purposes.
For example, Pocahontas (1995) is based on an actual historical figure of a Native American woman, portrayed and objectified as a scantily clad Disney Princess who falls in love with John Smith, an English adventurer and colonialist. Many recent movies have also criticized. One of them is Moana (2016) which tells the story of the Polynesian princess in the Pacific. The points of criticism is that Disney merged the culture of several Pacific people into one.
Beauty and the Beast and Women’s Language
Belle and Gaston
One of the most interesting conversations between Belle and Gaston is when he plans a wedding with Belle. Gaston gathers the town and gets everything ready for the wedding, he first asks Belle to marry him. . Here, Gaston discusses the life Belle and he will lead but she does not want to have. Belle politely declines.
Belle and the Beast
The first conversation between Belle and the Beast occurred after Belle trade places with her father. There is a power dynamic in this conversation the Beast avoids and interrupts Belle.
Does Coco accurately represent Mexican culture?
Coco effectively reflects some of the most beautiful Mexican traditions: the importance of family, our folk music, the parties in the cemeteries and the cempasuchil flowers (Mexican marigold). It portrays our ancestors’ voyage through Mictlán, the mythical city of the dead. There’s even a Xolo dog who guides the dead to the next life.
The fact that Coco is a beautiful film should not stop us from recognizing capitalist appropriation of Mexican traditions. Just like capitalism made a commodity and a cliché out of Frida Kahlo’s life, Dia de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead) has now become a profitable commodity. Using the beauty of our culture, Disney will make billions of dollars to line the pockets of Yankee capitalists. The profits they make from Mexican culture flow freely into the US while at the same time, Trump, like his predecessors, deports Mexicans and other immigrants.
Disney, the massive profit-driven entertainment multinational does not produce “art for art’s sake.” On the contrary, it is a mega-corporation that makes billions off of children’s movies, 11 theme parks, television programs, films and merchandise. In 2016, it had a revenue of $55.6 billion and total assets of $99 billion . Disney purchased Pixar in 2006 at $7.4 billion, bringing together two of the most important children’s film production companies.
In 2013, Disney attempted to copyright the “Day of the Dead, ” but faced a powerful backlash. Dia de los Muertos is a traditional Mexican holiday, with its roots pre-Columbian indigenous cultures; it dates back to Aztec festival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl, the “Lady of the Dead”. On this multi-day holiday in early November, people honor deceased family members by building altars, decorating gravesites and providing offerings. Families cook the diseased favorite meals, as well as Pan de Muertos (Bread of the dead) and spend time in graveyards, playing music and celebrating the dead.
Disney’s attempts to copyright Dia de los Muertos faced a massive backlash. A change.org petition received over 21,000 signatures. How could a US-based corporation, such as Disney, trademark a centuries-old holiday and profit from it? If they had succeeded, what could stop them from trademarking the Popol Vuh or the Chilam Balam for their next movie?
Disney was forced to back down from their trademark attempt and now, 4 years later, Coco is finally coming out in theaters. It was released in Mexico in late October and was released on November 22 in the United States.
