OpEd: The problem with censoring classic Disney movies on Disney+ – Inside the Magic
As the launch of Disney+ drew near, there was both a fear and expectation that a PC filter would be put on classic Disney movies, censoring several scenes now deemed too controversial and outright racist. Now that Disney+ is live, it is now clear that Disney had no intention of censoring its content and instead opted for a disclaimer written in each films description. This news came at both the horror and relief of many Disniacs seeking their idea of purity.
But there is a major problem The Walt Disney Company is faced with: They CANT take those scenes out because we find them at what are objectively extremely crucial plot points. Here are three of the most controversial scenes to prove this point:
Please note: This piece does NOT deny the views of the majority today. Instead, this piece stands to prove unfortunately objective points of storytelling and to show a need for us to be able to view stories through a lens beyond our own.
Yes, the lead crow in Dumbois named Jim Crow. Yes, a murder is what you call a group of crows, and yes, together, they are portrayed in ways that would make the Twittersphere cry racist! But these wise-cracking birds appear in one of the most important scenes in the film.
Why are they so important? THEY TEACH DUMBO TO FLY. They give him the magic feather, and they sing the most iconic song to come out of that movie after Baby Mine: When I see a elephant fly(which includes an ingenious level of puns). In all the racist ebonics-shouting hokiness, these crows are intended to be seen as heroes in what was written at the time to be a scene that starts with heckling banter and turns into one thats fun, and literally uplifting.
Okay, outside of the obviously racist cartoony Asian voices, this is still just a creepy, annoying, and uncomfortable song that should make everybody cringe. But it is a crucial scene for this telling.
Why are they so important? Because the cats sing their song as they trash the house, and they represent an invasion on Ladys home on an animal front as well as Aunt Saras human front. It is after this that the cats frame Lady for the crimes, and it drives their owner, Aunt Sara, to put Lady in a muzzle. The muzzle was the last straw, and Lady ran away. That scene is supposed to be disturbing and uncomfortable and distasteful from every angle and be a driving force to get Lady out of the house and on her adventure with Tramp.
I was just going to mention the Powwow scene, but lets talk about their role in the movie in general. Disney has a horrid track record of portraying Amerindians in a way that that would be favored in todays society, and the straight-up red-faced, raspy-voiced portrayal of the Indians in Peter Panis no exception (especially when the beautiful women like Tiger Lily are shown to have the most caucasian features, but thats a-whole-nother can of worms). But they are still crucial to the story.
Why are they so important? Well, for those of you who know Peter Pan,you know J.M. Barrie made them a rather crucial part of the story, and the same is true for Disneys version. When John, Michael, and the Lost Boys get captured by the Indians, we learn that Tiger Lily was captured by Captain Hook, which sends Peter and Wendy on their quest. The Powwow scenewhich is meant to serve as comic relief after the intense encounter with Captain Hookis what finally disillusions Wendy to Neverland and makes her ready to go home.
In short, there is no clean way to sufficiently clean up these stories other than investing in remakes to re-write movies and Disney canon to fit our time. Adding disclaimers and keeping the movies pure is the best way to go. But this writer wants to challenge every Disniac out there to try to view these movies from the world for which they were released and understand that none of the above scenes were produced to be maliciously racist and degrading. Society has a way of making things once okay be not okay anymore.
We should teach the next generation of Disniacs to see that dissonance between the moviegoing world of the past and today so that they can still appreciate these films for what they are, and still see what is good and funny today while understanding what is not OK anymore. Believe it or not, it is possible. Getting hung up on every PR blemishwith Disney or otherwiseis just as bad as agreeing with or blatantly ignoring them.
Continue reading here:
OpEd: The problem with censoring classic Disney movies on Disney+ - Inside the Magic
- They Seek to Curb Online Hate. The U.S. Accuses Them of Censorship. - The New York Times - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of possible action after the U.S. bars 5 Europeans accused of censorship - Los Angeles Times - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- CBS 60 Minutes Censorship Rings Another Alarm, Warning of Corporate Medias Threat to Democracy - Democracy Now! - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Trump administration bars 5 Europeans from entry to the U.S. over alleged censorship - NPR - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- US targets former EU commissioner, activists with visa bans over alleged censorship - Reuters - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of action after U.S. bars 5 Europeans accused of censorship - Global News - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- US bars five Europeans it says pressured tech firms to censor American viewpoints online - AP News - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of possible action after the US bars 5 Europeans accused of censorship - AP News - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU rejects US claims of censorship over tech rules after visa bans - EUobserver - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Trump administration bans top EU figures, citing 'censorship' of American views online - The National Desk - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Turkey intensifies censorship of LGBT-related content across media and culture in 2025 - Stockholm Center for Freedom - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Trump administration bars Europeans from U.S. for pressuring tech firms to censor American speech - Fortune - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- 'The myth of 'European censorship' is wielded by the Trump administration to avoid regulating Big Tech' - Le Monde.fr - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- How The Pogues Responded to Censorship of Their Hit Song Fairytale of New York: Times Change - VICE - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- RUBIO GOES ON OFFENSE AGAINST EU CENSORSHIP-INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX The Trump administration is escalating its fight over free speech, not just at home,... - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Opportunity fleeing the coasts, from censorship to forced speech and other commentary - New York Post - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of possible action after US bars five Europeans accused of censorship - Sky News - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of possible action after the US bars 5 Europeans accused of censorship - The Daily Review - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- EU warns of possible action after the US bars 5 Europeans accused of censorship - The Journal Gazette - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- France condemns travel restrictions on EU officials over online censorship - Washington Times - December 27th, 2025 [December 27th, 2025]
- Tonight in Your Rights: Beating the censors - All Rise News | Substack - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- CBS Shelves 60 Minutes Story On Trump Deportees At The Last Minute: People Are Threatening To Quit, Staffers Say - The Seattle Medium - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Exiled journalisms biggest threat is something more mundane than censorship - Nieman Lab - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Epstein victims angry over gaps and censorship in long-awaited file release - South China Morning Post - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- MI6 Confidential Issue #77 - MI6 - The Home Of James Bond - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- 2025 Book Censorship Wrapped: Trends, Challenges, and Successes Over The Year - Book Riot - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Indias Film Censorship Is Getting More Political and a New Data Leak Reveals Just How Deep It Runs - IndieWire - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Should the phrase "globalise the intifada" be banned? - Index on Censorship - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Sonys new censorship patent is one of the most hostile attacks on the arts yet - Digitally Downloaded - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- China Bans Winnie the Pooh? Country Now Forbids the Yellow Bear - Inside the Magic - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- A heart full of hope: behind the doors closed to women in Afghanistan - Index on Censorship - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Sony files AI censorship patent to make PlayStation games playable for all ages - Interesting Engineering - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- EFF Takes a Stand Against Censorship Disguised as Age Verification Laws - newsbreaks.infotoday.com - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- The 60 Minutes report on CECOT that Bari Weiss censored is now internet contraband - The Verge - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- 60 Minutes Staff Threaten to Quit Over Trump-Friendly Censorship - Inquisitr News - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Report: Over 8,700 news articles censored in Turkey in 2024 - Bianet - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- CBS, coverup, censorship, and that pesky tipping point - Daily Kos - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- Repression deepens in Hong Kong with Jimmy Lais guilty verdict and censorship over deadly Wang Fuk Court fire - FIRE | Foundation for Individual... - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- PlayStation's AI Censorship Tool Is Angering Gamers, 'Black Mirror Is Here' - GAMINGbible - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- The right should be pro-actively defending free speech, not getting caught up in petty censorship feuds - nypost.com - December 22nd, 2025 [December 22nd, 2025]
- EFF, Open Rights Group, Big Brother Watch, and Index on Censorship Call on UK Government to Repeal Online Safety Act - Electronic Frontier Foundation - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- Censor approval pending as IFFK puts 19 films, including Palestine-themed titles, on hold | Entertainment News - Hindustan Times - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- Europes real censorship problem isnt what Trump claims - Index on Censorship - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- Is impartiality possible when it comes to free speech? - Index on Censorship - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- Union government disallows screening of 19 films at the 30th International Film Festival of Kerala - t2ONLINE - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- This HIV Expert Refused To Censor Data, Then Quit the CDC - KFF Health News - December 16th, 2025 [December 16th, 2025]
- Dhurandhar Faces Regional Censorship in the Gulf but Dominates India With Massive Action-Spy Buzz - Times of India - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Censorship pure and simple: critics hit out at Trump plan to vet visitors social media - The Guardian - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Meta accused of banning LGBTQ+ accounts in one of its "biggest waves of censorship" ever - LGBTQ Nation - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Who is 2025s Tyrant of the Year? - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- YouTube and big tech censorship threatens global accountability, Palestinian rights groups say - Mondoweiss - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Elons Crying Censorship Over An EU Fine That Has Nothing To Do With Censorship - Above the Law - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Opinion | We Should Teach Our Students How to Think, Not What to Believe - The New York Times - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Donald Trump - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Vladimir Putin - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Recep Tayyip Erdoan - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei - Index on Censorship - December 14th, 2025 [December 14th, 2025]
- Trump Is Using the Misinformation Censorship Playbook Republicans Attacked Biden For - Reason Magazine - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- What we learned about free speech in 2025 - Good Authority - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Under the radar: Israel steps up censorship and suppression of independent reporting - Committee to Protect Journalists - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Education advocates urge Hochul to sign bill aimed at combating censorship in schools - WAMC - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- ICEBlock app sues Trump administration for censorship and 'unlawful threats' - NPR - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- OnePlus Removes AI Writing Feature After Reports of China-Focused Censorship - PCMag - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: John Lee - Index on Censorship - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Facing Criticism, Weber State Says It Will Be More Nuanced - Inside Higher Ed - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Snapshots of Censorship: The Cost of Criticizing the President - PEN America - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Meta shuts down global accounts linked to abortion advice and queer content - The Guardian - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Nayib Armando Bukele - Index on Censorship - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- LGBTQ+ and abortion organisations claim Meta is silencing their accounts in huge censorship sweep - attitude.co.uk - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Kentuckians feared the post-war world. So they burned their kids comic books - Lexington Herald Leader - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- ICE tracking app sues Trump admin for abuse of govt power, censorship; says admin pressured Apple to remove app - CNN - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Pro-Life Pregnancy Centers Case: Even the ACLU Calls NJ Actions 'Censorship by Intimidation' - cbn.com - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Tyrant of the year 2025: Narendra Modi - Index on Censorship - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- ICEBlock Developer Sues Trump Admin Over Censorship 12/09/2025 - MediaPost - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- OnePlus temporarily disables a major AI feature following allegations of censoring sensitive geopolitical terms - PhoneArena - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Despite censorship woes and the terrifying price of RAM, 2025 was the year I fell back in love with PC gaming - GamesRadar+ - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- Internet Censorship Tools Exported Along Belt and Road - The Jamestown Foundation - December 12th, 2025 [December 12th, 2025]
- 'There's too much censorship, restrictions': Mona Singh says the kind of shows OTT streams 'would never be shown on TV' | Hindustan Times - Hindustan... - November 30th, 2025 [November 30th, 2025]
- Cultural heritage organizations need continued funding and freedom from censorship [letter] - LancasterOnline - November 30th, 2025 [November 30th, 2025]