Disney eliminated the final reference to Song of The South in Walt Disney World by taking down a photo displayed at Walt Disney Presents in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
James Baskett as Uncle Remus in Song of the South (1946), Walt Disney Productions
Long before the term “woke” was a part of the modern vocabulary, Disney has been actively fleeing from this film. Song of The South mixes live action and animation together a full 18 years before this feat would be duplicated and touted in Disney’s release of Mary Poppins.
It’s also the film that originated a song that for a long time became one of Disney’s main anthems, Zip a Dee Doo Dah.
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However, many have often accused the film of being racist due to its depiction of sharecroppers in the south following the events of the American Civil War. There was a concentrated effort to erase Song of The South from Disney history entirely. It started with the erasure of the film, barring it from all replays on television and home video release in the United States. Disney also never references the film when talking about the storied history of the studio. This is despite the fact that James Baskett, who played Uncle Remus in the movie, made Hollywood history as the first black man to receive an honorary Oscar for his portrayal of the character in 1947, shortly before his death.
This was a full 16 years before Sidney Poitier would become the first black man to win best actor at the Oscars for his role in Lilies of The Field.
Splash Mountain is a ride in Disneyland based on the movie Song of the South. Photo Credit: Cd637 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Recently, Disney closed down its popular Splash Mountain attraction in both Walt Disney World and Disneyland, which is based on the Br’er Rabbit cartoon sections from Song of The South. It was replaced with Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, a ride very loosely based off the animated film The Princess and The Frog.
However, this attraction has been widely panned by Disney fans for its lack of audio animatronic characters, lackluster original music, and the fact that it spends several hours of practically every day since opening in Disney’s Magic Kingdom down with maintenance issues.
Promotional image of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure via Disney World website
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But Disney’s Song of The South purge in Walt Disney World has finally been completed, with the final reference to the film vanishing from the park just last week.
WDWNT reported that an image depicting Song of The South in Walt Disney Presents (formerly Walt Disney One Man’s Dream) had vanished from the walk-through attraction. This is a sort of Disney museum, highlighting Walt Disney’s life and accomplishments. Song of The South was given a passing reference in a mural depicting Disney’s accomplishments in 1943. It featured Uncle Remus and the kids alongside Br’er Rabbit, Br’er Fox, and Br’er Bear.
The mural now shows Mister Toad and Angus McBadger from The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, which was released in 1949.
A mural from Walt Disney Presents at Disney’s Hollywood Studios via Daps Magic YouTube
WDWNT goes on to refer to the film as “problematic,” feeding into the Disney narrative that the film is racist. This is the same narrative that caused the loss of Splash Mountain and the erasure of the first black man to ever receive an honorary Oscar from The Academy.
But YouTube personality La Reina Creole has been one of the loudest voices pushing back against that narrative. She recently sat down with me to explain why she feels the film isn’t “problematic” at all.
“The time period (of the film) is after slavery, known as Reconstruction,” she explained. “In this time period, enslaved black people, along with black people who were never slaves, poor white people, and white planter class people had to re-learn how to live together in society under new rules.”
The updated mural from Walt Disney Presents at Disney’s Hollywood Studios via MainGatePass.com
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She went on to detail how, during Reconstruction, there were many black and white sharecroppers working on plantations. In Song of the South there is even a white family of sharecroppers shown.
“According to my Jim Crow south-raised grandparents, it wasn’t uncommon for both poor black and white people to live together in relative peace,” she said. “The speech patterns in Song of The South are the same speech patterns my grandparents spoke in. Many people of that day had just a grade school education and it showed in their speech, regardless of race.”
Br’er Rabbit in Song of the South (1946), Walt Disney Productions
She then went on to defend the relationship between Uncle Remus and the plantation owners in the film.
“What some call ‘subservient’ in this film is actually the preservation of an existing relationship that did not just end because slavery ended,” La Reina said, referencing how many have incorrectly criticized the film for its portrayal of “happy slaves.”
“Uncle Remus had ties to the family before slavery, as did a lot of black families in this time period. My third great grandfather, a captain in the Mississippi Infantry during the Civil War, had his mixed-race nephew, fathered by his brother, and former enslaved mother live with them for wages.”
Br’er Bear and Br’er Fox in Song of the South (1946), Walt Disney Productions
She then spoke on how the B’rer Rabbit stories are based on oral stories that originated in Africa and were brought to the New World.
“These stories were mainly amusing but within were life lessons such as outwitting those bigger/stronger than you and not letting your pride get you into a situation you may not be able to get out of,” she concluded.
Br’er Rabbit in Song of the South (1946), Walt Disney Productions
Song of The South has long been a target of Disney’s Stories Matter department. This division of the company is tasked with finding and eliminating perceived “problematic” elements in the company’s films, television shows, and theme parks. It was responsible for the re-imagining of Splash Mountain, changing the Indian camp scene in Peter Pan’s Flight, and altering the name of one of the Country Bears in the Country Bear Jamboree. It’s also the division of Disney behind the disclaimers that now air before classic movies like Peter Pan and Dumbo on Disney+.
How do you feel about Disney completely erasing Song of The South from its theme parks and history? Do you agree with La Reina Creole that this film details an important part of the South’s history through reconstruction? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
Marvin The Movie Monster Montanaro is a YouTube commentator and personality specializing in movies, TV, video games, and professional wrestling. He can be found on his channels Tooney Town TV and Tooney Town Wrestling with daily content and weekly livestreams. He can also be found on That Game Place, the That Park Place video game channel.
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