Artist Josh Agle, better known by his pseudonym Shag, revealed that The Walt Disney Company rejected one of his mug designs because they “were wary of cultural appropriation and being offensive to some people.”
Kapu Akua mug designed by Shag
Agle posted the mug design to his Instagram account and shared, “‘Kapu Akua’ means ‘Forbidden God’ in Hawaiian, and if any of you know the story behind this mug you’ll know why I gave it that name.”
He then shared that Disney rejected the design, “Long story short, a major corporation rejected this design, explaining that they were wary of cultural appropriation and being offensive to some people.”
Agle continued, “That’s their prerogative and I won’t knock them for it, but I thought it was a cool design, and should see the light of day, so Lost Temple Traders produced it for me.”
Kapu Akua mug designed by Shag
The artist then shared how his post is likely to upset The Walt Disney Company, “I know this major corporation isn’t happy that I went ahead and released this, but I’m not happy with this major corporation.
He explained his frustration, “They didn’t give me a single sample of the art, merchandise, or apparel that I designed for them last summer, despite me asking several times. In fact, no one ever even answered my requests.”
Kapu Akua mug design by Shag
Agle added, “I keep hoping someone from this major corporation will reach out to me. I’m sure they have heard from various sources that I am not happy, and may not work with them again.”
He concluded, “Sorry for sharing the drama! Anyway, there are a few of these mugs left from Lost Temple Traders (link in my bio). Each mug comes with an illustrated coaster that also serves as a Certificate of Authenticity. Get one before they’re gone.”
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While Agle did not name the corporation that rejected the design it’s clearly inspired by Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room attraction.
Enchanted Tiki Room entrance via DocumentDisney YouTube
It’s no surprise that The Walt Disney Company would engage in such behavior, the company has rebranded itself to one that commits self-flagellation and hates its own history. Not only has Disney turned into a company that truly hates itself, it’s also engaged in the promotion of pure evil and destructive behavior in the name of avoiding offense.
The Company’s Diversity and Inclusion Manager Vivian Ware stated during a Reimagine Tomorrow conference in 2022, “Last summer we removed all of the gendered greetings in relationship to our live spiels.”
She explained, “So we no longer say, ‘Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls.’ We provided training for all of our cast members in relationship to that. So now they know it’s, ‘Hello, everyone’ or ‘Hello, friends.’”
Mickey walks down Main Street USA at Disneyland. (Credit: Mortimer Productions)
Ware continued, “We’re in the process of changing over those recorded messages, and so many of you are probably familiar when we brought the fireworks back to the Magic Kingdom, we no longer say, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,’ We say, ‘Dreamers of all ages.’”
“So I love the fact that it’s opened up the creativity, the opportunity for our cast members to look at that. We have our cast members working with merchandise, working with food and beverage, working with all of our guest-facing areas, where perhaps we want to create that magical moment with our cast members, with our guests,” she said.
Ware concluded, “And we don’t want to just assume because someone might be, in our interpretation, may be presenting as female, that they may not want to be called ‘princess.’ So, let’s think differently about how do we really engage with our guests in a meaningful and inclusive way that makes it magical and memorable for everyone.”
SCOOP: Disney diversity and inclusion manager Vivian Ware says the company has eliminated all mentions of “ladies,” “gentlemen,” “boys,” and “girls” in its theme parks in order to create “that magical moment” for children who do not identify with traditional gender roles. pic.twitter.com/OWsGTUoeCA
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) March 29, 2022
What do you make of Disney rejecting this mug design?
It’s obvious the design was from the Tiki Room. They seem to suggest the Tiki Room itself is cultural appropriation. That’s their choice and the wrong one.