Disney in the Classroom
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Dsney In the Classroom:
Disney and the Civil Rights Movement

Remember the Titans
(c) Disney

In recent years the Walt Disney Company has made many films that depict the radical (and necessary) changes caused by The Civil Rights Movement.  One of the most recent of these films was Remember the Titans. The movie related the story of a high school football team integrated by the desegregation of a
Virginia school district.  The movie did an excellent job of showing how a common goal can inspire people taught to distrust and to even hate each other; instead to trust and to even love each other.  Films of this type are very useful as teaching tools.  They help students to see why the Civil Rights Movement was necessary.  They can also be used as a way to inspire young people to examine, and to consider trying to change, the racist and sexist attitudes that are still present in our society.  However, I think one of the best ways to truly understand the effects of the Civil Rights Movement is by viewing Disney films that were not made about the Movement.

Mickey Mouse in blackface (courtesy of The Encyclopedia of Disney Animated Shorts)

My first step to applying this idea in the classroom is to show students clips from the Disney cartoons of the 1930's.  It was common in these cartoons to portray African Americans as shiftless or woman as victims. We discuss why these stereotypes were acceptable at that time; and that they were not a conscious effort to degrade anyone.  We also discuss how these stereotypes effected African Americans and women, and why we should not stereotype people.  This brings us to the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement, the end
of World War Two.

A female welder doing her part

African Americans and women contributed a great deal to the War Effort.  Blacks served with distinction as soldiers; and both blacks and women kept factories producing the weapons that enabled the Allies to win the War.  Since they had an important role during the War, most blacks and women expected a change in their status when the War was over.  Most Americans did not see the need for such a change.

Uncle Remus (James Baskett) in Song of the South
(c) Disney

This can be seen in the film Song of the South (1946).  In the film Uncle Remus is clearly a positive character.  He saves a young boy's life, and he is instrumental in bringing the boy's parents back together.  However, the setting and tone of the film (A Reconstruction Era Georgia plantation where black
workers were portrayed as enjoying a subservient, slave like existence.) enraged African American organizations like the NAACP.  This resulted in an organized boycott of the film.  When my students view clips from the film they can clearly see why blacks, in 1946, protested its release.  They can also see why some African Americans have lobbied successfully to prevent the movie from being released on video. (at least in the United States)  However, I make students aware of the fact that Song of the South did achieve modest financial success in its initial release, and that James Baskett won an Academy Award for his wonderful portrayal of Uncle Remus. (Walt Disney worked very hard to see that James Baskett's performance was recognized.  This tends to make ridiculous accusations that Walt was a racist.)  Clearly the majority of the American public, in 1946, did not see anything wrong with blacks being portrayed as subservient to whites.