When Halloween rolls around each year and children flock to get their costumes, there are always quite a few little girls who want to be princesses. Cue the Disney Princess film collection of costumes in the window displays of the Disney Store like clockwork. When five of the nine Disney princesses are white, some non-white children and their parents may be put off by the selection, while others will choose what they like or identify with. A friend of mine once told me a story about dressing up as Snow White for Halloween. She was told by her peers in her class that she couldn’t possibly be Snow White, because she is black. Thanks to the beliefs that her parents instilled in her, at aged eight years old, my friend remained unmoved by this racially loaded remark and rebutted "I’m Snow Black!" From one perspective this was a proud moment for a black child, but consider from another perspective what a remark like that aimed at another child who had not been given a disclaimer on the fallacy of race inadequacy could have done? The power of racial inscription that exists in Disney films has powerful repercussions; they build on ideologies that feed on inferiority complexes that have been created throughout history.
(image courtesy of nippy13 on deviantart.com)
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