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The Slash Mountain riding school, Disney amusement park, is at the heart of a controversy. Many wish that his main musical theme be withdrawn because it is considered racist.
by Melanie Bonvard
In Disneywordd, in Florida, in the United States, an attraction is less and less unanimous. The latter is called Splash Mountain, and highlights mentions to the film The melody of the south, released in 1946. The film tells the story of a daily newspaper on a plantation in the south and the image that is returned from this time is not at all realistic, according to Disney fans who wish that the attraction is changed. In the New york times, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People explains that this feature film "the impression of an idyllic master-slave relationship." Indeed, the daily life of blacks at that time seems idealized and far from what the slaves really lived.
Consequently, it is on Change.org that we can find a petition demanding the deletion of all mentions of the film within this famous attraction. Already in 2019, Disney CEO Bob Iger explained that this film "Is not appropriate in today's world" and decided not to broadcast the film on the Disney + streaming platform. Regarding the petition, the demands and denunciations are clear: "Although the merry-go-round is considered a popular classic, its story and script are imbued with extremely problematic and stereotypical racist references from the 1946 film 'Song of the South'. Disney removed 'Song of the South' from its catalog, refusing to share it on DVD or on its streaming services. The best solution to erase all traces of this racist film would be to change the theme of Splash Mountain to a ride on the theme of the Princess and the frog ”
If the modification proposal revolves around the animated film The princess and the Frog it is because this feature film marks the portrait of the first, and unique, black princess of Disney. For the moment, 10,000 people have already signed this petition.