Splash Mountain Closes Today. Here's Why it Should Have Happened Sooner.

[Zorro]

Thousands of Guests flocked to Walt Disney World Resort on Sunday to ride Splash Mountain for the last time. Wait times reached over 200 minutes, breaking a record for the Magic Kingdom log flume ride. Disneyland Resort’s Splash Mountain will also close to make way for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, a Princess and the Frog (2009) retheme, though a date hasn’t been announced.

While many fans mourned Frontierland’s only water ride, activists are happy to see it go. While the ride seems innocuous, it’s based on an objectively racist film, Song of the South (1946). The movie is so problematic that while The Walt Disney Company streams films containing offensive content on Disney Plus with a cultural sensitivity warning, such as Peter Pan (1953)and Dumbo (1941), it refuses to offer legal means to view Song of the South.

Some Splash Mountain fanatics will point to modern-day “woke” ideology that led to the ride’s “cancellation.” But activist groups like the NAACP protested Song of the South upon its release in 1946 – the film presents an idealized version of post-Civil War era life for Black Americans. Additionally, while #SaveSplashMountain campaigners will point to the honorary Oscar awarded to James Baskett (Uncle Remus), the African-American actor wasn’t allowed to enter the film’s premiere or Academy Award ceremony due to racial segregation laws at the time.

Uncle Remus presents a sanitized, white-washed version of the Jim Crow-era South. Black Americans, though recently freed of slavery, were subjected to racist laws, violence, and underpaid labor. Song of the South does not mention this.

https://insidethemagic.net/2023/01/splash-mountain-racist-history-jc1/

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

1. is this ride in Disneyland, CA?

[Takket]

2. and Orlando WDW

[Dorian Gray]

5. It's in both parks.....

It's my daughter's favorite. Not because of the theme. The Tiana upgrade will be fantastic, and I'm sure it'll continue to be her favorite.

[Roland99]

6. Yes, it will.

If scope is unchanged from what I saw months ago, the new attraction will blow guests away

[Fiendish Thingy]

3. It's funny, because SOTS has been available on home video outside North America

At least in Europe and Japan, or it was- there were definitely VHS and Laserdisc versions in those countries.

It was shown in theatres in the US as late as the 80’s.

You can still get copies of Birth of a Nation and Gone With The Wind, which IMO are both worse from a racism perspective, than SOTS. You can even buy copies of Reifenstahl’s Triumph Of The Will. These films can serve as historical artifacts of a time when America was deep in denial about the sins of its past.

However, I wholeheartedly agree with Disney’s decision to re-theme the ride.

[PJMcK]

4. About time

Walt Disney was no hero.

[RockRaven]

7. If anyone wants a deep dive on the film, the You Must Remember This podcast did a 6 part series

on it. Episodes 146 to 151 (release dates Oct-Nov 2019).

[LetMyPeopleVote]

8. I have been following this story on twitter

I needed something light today to make up for the attack on my Temple and other news. I have been amused by the lines for the Splash Mountain ride on its last day. The ride is going to be converted to a different theme. This is not one of my favorite rides and I am glad that they are getting rid of the racist Song of the South memes. It is still a fun ride and the drop at the end is fun.

The lines for the last day of this ride amuse me.

Link to tweet

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This ride has not been maintained for a while and was down when I was last at WDW back in December of 2021. I will not miss this ride.

[LAS14]

9. What is the cultural warning for Peter Pan?

"with a cultural sensitivity warning, such as Peter Pan (1953)and Dumbo (1941),"

I never saw Dumbo, but if it's set in Africa, I can imagine. But I can't imagine what cultural warning applies to Peter Pan. Does anyone know?

tia
las

[Aristus]

10. Probably its "How! Ugh!" stereotypical portrayal of Native Americans.

That and 'Tiger Lily, Indian Princess', which is another offensive stereotype.

[LAS14]

11. Oh, right. It's been a while. nt

[Aristus]

12. "Dumbo" had the black crows, portrayed with very offensive stereotypes common to the time.

When I was a kid, and unaware of the features of the stereotypes, I loved the crow characters. I thought they were hip, and smart, and funny. I can't watch them now, and feel a little ashamed of my prior enjoyment.

[hunter]

13. They could re-theme it as a gigantic termite mound on post-apocalypse earth...

... full of mutated singing animals.

All they'd have to do is add some giant robotic termites.

wikipedia

[mainer]

14. I had no idea it was related to SOTS

I thought Splash Mountain was some Western ride with gold mines and dinosaur fossils and landscape based on Utah. Or have I got the wrong ride? Couldn’t they keep the mechanics and just change the symbols?

[ificandream]

15. There's a lot of grumbling on Twitter about this.

The people who are grumbling either don't get it or don't want to get it. I recently found the movie streaming on Twitch. It's horrible and not just for the racism.