[joskimo]

When DD#1 was really young, Pocahontis came out. She loved Pocahontis, dd#1 is Eskimo so it was nice to #1 have a native american heroine and #2 have a female character who wasn't waiting for a prince to rescue her. Soon on the heals of Pocahontis was Mulan, another strong female character. So, where is the black princess??

[bromanchik]

They still have not figured out a way of turning oppression into something educational and entertaining. I, personally, cannot see them doing anything on slavery or civil rights.

[LisaCA]

god help us if disney finds "a way". btw, most native americans were appalled by disney's pocahontas portrayal. Personally, I'm appalled by most everything disney and can't bear the thought of them tackling us AA folks .



Cranky rant:And I'm not at all happy with the princess thing. I think it sends the wrong message to little girls. jmho.

[NDN]

Originally Posted by FH-LisaCA

god help us if disney finds "a way". btw, most native americans were appalled by disney's pocahontas portrayal. Personally, I'm appalled by most everything disney and can't bear the thought of them tackling us AA folks .



Cranky rant:And I'm not at all happy with the princess thing. I think it sends the wrong message to little girls. jmho.

Just chiming in to support Lisa on this one. pochantas isn't allowed in my house as I found the entire thing to be stereotypical, etc.,etc...everyone who reads my posts know how I feel about it. And...yes...I know that some people that are "part" (insert tribe if known here) think that it is fine...as they have a right to do...but all the traditionals I know consider the movie to be yet another version of the Hollywood tribe. Ok...saying all this to say...if they have managed to offend other cultures (not ancestries...big difference)--yes, I have heard objections from Asians and Middle Easterners about Disney's "tribute" to their cultures--Lord, knows what they would do with an AA/African/Black/whatever angle they would take it from princess.

[LisaCA]

for those who don't find the Cinderella message problematic, I think someone here mentioned that there was a multicultural cast of Cinderella produced a few years ago. brandy(?) was cinderella(?)-didn't see it, but it's been mentioned a few times. There's also an african barbie (again problematic) called "princess of africa". that's the total sum of princesses of african descent that I know about in a consumer setting.

[jheald]

I do understand the above statements regarding Disney's or Hollywood's portrayal of characters but it is just that....Disney/Hollywood. I would never expect them to get a make-believe character "right." Anyway, I too think it would be fun to have an AA princess just so there is another choice for families that choose those toys. She wouldn't have to be derived from something in that culture. There are lots of successful AA women in the world. I know...they would feel the need to give it quite the life, but that's where you have to remember it is all make-believe anyway.

Just my thoughts. Completely agree with how Disney/Hollywood messes up the culture side of things.

Janet

[BrandyHagz]

NDN,

I don't mean to sidetrack this thread - but I NEED to ask you something and since this is kinda on that topic...I thought, why not here!

Ok, so I drove home this past week to visit family in Texas...driving thru Oklahoma I noticed that almost EVERY sign that had to do with NA's didn't say, "Native American" but instead, said "Indian"...which is more accepted?

I ask, because a good friend of mine, who is brown (she prefers brown over anything else) doesn't like to be called AA and will quickly correct anyone who makes the mistake (I should make sure everyone knows that she isn't doing it because she is ashamed - she said she'll gladly call herself AA when CC's start calling themselves "(Insert mother country here) American"...

[qs mom]

I have the Cinderalla with Brandy as Cinderella on tape. But I don't think I've actually ever watched it.

Disney should stick to talking animals - Bambi, Stitch, Pooh, etc.

The way that they portray the women is disturbing. Actually, what they make them look like is disturbing.

Snow White didn't have a tiny waist and huge boobs - but somehow Jasmine and Pocohontas do. Don't even get me started on Kim Possible. The 'look' of that charecter really burns me. How many kids do you know that wear almost nothing between their boobs and hips? And have boobs and hips that curvy? With the teeniest, tiniest waist?

Great message for young kids - girls should barely dress and be unrealistically skinny!

[redbonec]

NDN,

I also have the same question as Brandy!

When I started teaching 10 years ago, I always stressed the term "Native American" over "Indian." However, this year I saw in a couple recently published non-fiction books and in the students' weekly magazine, "Indian" was word used instead.

[LisaCA]

if I may, I'd like to try and answer this one.

"american indian" is a term with baggage (the whole columbus thing), but "Native american" has baggage too. I think like African American and Black, the terms are used interchangably, with most Native americans preferring "indian". Both terms are terms created by non-indians to describe a large and very diverse grouping of indigenous persons. btw, the name Native americans could be used to include everyone in the americas, but really only applies to the US. each country has its own terminology that should be used.

My mom and her relatives, Narragansett indians, prefer "indians", even the younger generations.

[AdrienneG]

Originally Posted by FH-LisaCA

for those who don't find the Cinderella message problematic, I think someone here mentioned that there was a multicultural cast of Cinderella produced a few years ago. brandy(?) was cinderella(?)-didn't see it, but it's been mentioned a few times. There's also an african barbie (again problematic) called "princess of africa". that's the total sum of princesses of african descent that I know about in a consumer setting.

Yes I saw the Disney t.v. show with Brandy as Cinderella and Whitney Houston as her fairy godmother and her prince was an Asian guy or was he Hispanic? Disney really didnt clarify who he was ethnically.

I would be shocked if Disney was able to make a cartoon movie with a girl of color that wasnt sterotypical.

Cinderella gets to be a normal White girl who happens to be living in poverty at her stepmother's house who gets rescued by a prince...why is it that Mulan and Pocohontas had to be "exceptional" people of color to be portrayed by Disney? Why couldn't they be regular people? The underlying message of those stories is that a woman becomes great when a great man rescues her, and that a woman becomes great if her makeup and clothes have her dressed up...and that whiteness is good to have, and if you don't have it, fall in love with it and be rescued by it.

Plus the Pocohontas story portrayed by Disney isnt even the true story version. I would be offended too that Native Americans are represented by that...it was more about White values of Native American-ness...not how Native Americans see themselves.

I cant miss that Cindrella is blonde with blue eyes and was picked because she's more beautiful than her ugly stepsisters.

The Disney tv movie with Brandy was cute, and funny because it doesn't address race at all...we dont know what cultural background the prince is but we can see that the princess is Black, with 1 Black stepsister and 1 White stepsister. I actually admit to liking that t.v. movie. Brandy looked cute with her braids and her clothes and Whitney sang well and was whimsy...Bernadette Peters tried to convince us that she was an evil stepmother (she didnt seem evil to me) yet it was so obvious that the Disney trademark is fantasy.

That movie was a fantasy of racial equality where Cinderella was from a multi-racial family, and the prince was from a multi-racial family too and everyone in the town was Black and White and Multi-racial.

For a long time Disney has made movies that were a White fantasy of other races, and a White fantasy of whiteness...Snow White (skin fair as snow), Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella for reference....Mulan is still a White fantasy of an Asian girl and Pocohontas is a White fantasy of a Native American girl that a White man discovers and falls in love with. (Does she fall in love with him first or does he fall in love with her first? I cant remember! )

Anyway off my soap box for now!

[AdrienneG]

Originally Posted by FH-LisaCA

if I may, I'd like to try and answer this one.

"american indian" is a term with baggage (the whole columbus thing), but "Native american" has baggage too. I think like African American and Black, the terms are used interchangably, with most Native americans preferring "indian". Both terms are terms created by non-indians to describe a large and very diverse grouping of indigenous persons. btw, the name Native americans could be used to include everyone in the americas, but really only applies to the US. each country has its own terminology that should be used.

My mom and her relatives, Narragansett indians, prefer "indians", even the younger generations.

Yes this reminds me of how White people "named" a group of people "Eskimo"....but I have heard many call themselves "Inuit".

Ive always been aware that with Native Americans, there is a difference in what Native Americans call themselves versus what White people have been calling them.

[BrandyHagz]

I grew up in far North Texas - and we always called NA's "Indian's" and it wasn't until I joined this forumt that I started calling them NA's...it was my visit back home last week that got me to wondering...cuz all the signs said "Indian" and it dawned on me that we always called them that...and they call themselves that...so whats with the NA thing?

[AdrienneG]

Originally Posted by BrandyHagz

NDN,

I don't mean to sidetrack this thread - but I NEED to ask you something and since this is kinda on that topic...I thought, why not here!

Ok, so I drove home this past week to visit family in Texas...driving thru Oklahoma I noticed that almost EVERY sign that had to do with NA's didn't say, "Native American" but instead, said "Indian"...which is more accepted?

I ask, because a good friend of mine, who is brown (she prefers brown over anything else) doesn't like to be called AA and will quickly correct anyone who makes the mistake (I should make sure everyone knows that she isn't doing it because she is ashamed - she said she'll gladly call herself AA when CC's start calling themselves "(Insert mother country here) American"...

See I live in California, and in my state, usually, when a person says they are Indian, they are talking about by way of India.

And if I am in New York, I have to clarify by saying East Indian if Im speaking of a person whose roots are in India versus someone who is West Indian by way of the West Indies.

I have older relatives who have rejected the term African American cuz they say they do not have roots in Africa. And those same relatives have Native American roots...none of that "I'm part this" but actually being registered in the rolls and being able to trace their roots via that.

And to them they stake claim in their American roots and take that very seriously.

And also those older relatives remember a time where if someone said u were African they were insulting you for having a dark complexion.

The Africans I know do not understand Black Americans using the term AA. Black Americans are seen as American by people from other countries. Africans Ive spoken with on the issue have said that Black Americans are Americans, not African cuz to them its a place of birth and cultural background associated with that place of birth...and as a Black American I wasnt born in Africa, I was born in America.

I am a person who wants to claim ALL of my privileges as an American...which is why I see myself as Black or Black American. Although I have used AA so that people wouldnt be confused in forums that use AA to refer to Black people.

[Spydoor]

In Canada they are Natives or First Nations or by their tribe name. If you say Indians, we'll think that you are talking about people from India. lol Also, do not use the work Eskimo up here as that is a nasty word that never has been used by them. They are called Inuit, or by their tribe name/area. Which would you rather be called; "eater of raw flesh" or "the people"?

As for AA, we don't really have many up here except to visit. They are African Canadian (not used a lot), or mainly just Black. And yes, there are lots here. Just where do you think that the Loyalist Underground Railroad ended?!