Disney film raises racism issue

A new movie from Walt Disney Pictures is raising old questions about racism in Mouse House animation.

"The Princess and the Frog," opening nationwide Dec. 11, marks the first time that a female Disney hero is African-American. Princess Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose) kisses a frog, transforming him into a prince, and they'll eventually live happily ever after.

After showcasing women of other colors (Pocahontas, Mulan, Princess Jasmine of "Aladdin"), adding a black woman to Disney's canon is a breakthrough. Yet the recent release of a preview trailer showing Tiana's suitor, Prince Naveen, as light-skinned with Caucasian features (albeit with a Latin accent) raises doubt about Disney's dedication to cultural advancement.

Search "Disney black princess" on the Web, and reactions to Tiana's interracial romance can be intense reads.

Some posters complain that Disney is protecting its box-office potential by not appearing "too black" for white moviegoers. Others insist they won't expose their children to an interracial relationship on screen. A few don't like Disney setting "The Princess and the Frog" in New Orleans, where African-Americans still suffer the effects of Hurricane Katrina. The trailer's glimpse of a black voodoo man and exaggerated Cajun accents draw mild protests.

And some posters dismiss all complaints, telling the offended to get a life.

The tempest again raises memories of times when Disney animated hits were lambasted for unflattering racial stereotypes, either in their time, such as "Aladdin," or through hindsight, as with "Song of the South" and "Dumbo."

"Fantasia" (1940) During the "Pastoral Symphony" segment, a playful group of creatures includes a black centaur with exaggerated features shining the hooves of a graceful white centaur. Starting in 1969, that image was removed from all versions of "Fantasia," or framed so only the white centaur is shown.

"Dumbo" (1941) Take your pick. Either the shuffling, minstrel show crows (one named Jim Crow) singing: "I be done seen 'bout ev'rything when I see an elephant fly," or when faceless black men perform menial labor while singing: "We never learned to read and write," and "Grab that rope, you hairy ape."

"Song of the South" (1946) Kindly storyteller Uncle Remus (James Baskett) speaks and sings "Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah" in an uneducated dialect suitable for a post-Civil War setting but for not modern ears. Disney stopped re-releasing it to theaters after 1986. The movie has never been available on home video in the United States, except in bootleg form.

"Peter Pan" (1953) While visiting Neverland, the Darling children encounter stereotypical American Indians explaining that their skin color comes from blushing after kissing a woman. It's presumed to be the only reason they're not white. A sultry Indian maiden's dance amid leering tribesmen is insulting and creepy.

"Lady and the Tramp" (1955) The Siamese cat twins sing with slanted eyes and pidgin diction, in an Asian stereotype common to live-action films of the era. Complaints didn't prevent Disney from including a similar feline in "The Aristocats" (1970).