Disney has added warnings to films with racist scenes in the hopes of sparking conversation about negative portrayals of people and cultures in the media. But is it enough?
While we often think of Disney films as the ultimate in family-friendly content, some older classics contain racist stereotypes and inaccurate depictions of people. Rather than wipe the content, the media company has added an advisory for these films on its Disney+ streaming platform, acknowledging the problematic scenes and encouraging viewers to learn more about a new initiative dedicated to better representing its audience.
The choice to show these scenes with commentary — rather than erasing them or showing them without any mention of their problematic nature — is an “important step” for Disney in coming to terms with not only its own film library, but also the country’s reckoning with its past, Darnell Hunt, dean of social sciences at UCLA, told Lifewire in a phone interview.
Disney says on its website Stories Matter that it sees these recommendations as an opportunity to start a conversation about the representation of people and cultures in film. This comes at a time when Hollywood studios are tasked with increasing diversity at the top and also better representing cultures and people on screen.