Anti-woke brigades are losing their minds over Disney’s new ride inspired by The Princess and the Frog

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Self-proclaimed anti-woke Disney Parks fans on the internet are lashing out after the company disrupted a ride based on a film containing harmful anti-black racist tropes.

Disney’s Splash Mountain, the original ride, was themed “Song of the South,” which contained racist stereotypes, the Associated Press reports. Criticism over the ride’s racist themes came to a head in 2020, following the killing of George Floyd at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer.

To date, it is the only film removed from Disney’s catalog due to criticism that it contains racist themes, The daily beast reports.

The new ride, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, is based on “The Princess and the Frog” and will open this summer. The move received widespread praise, with many pointing out how meaningful it is to see black women represented by Princess Tiana.

“To little black girls, Tiana means a lot,” English teacher Neal Lester told the Associated Press. “When a little kid can see someone who looks like them, it’s important.”

“Disney is all about money and getting people into the park, and you can make money while being represented, being aware of the history of social justice and making everyone feel like they belong,” Lester continued.

However, a group of social media users are lashing out at the change, with some saying Disney has become too sensitive while dismissing concerns about racist content in the original ride. The daily beast reports.

“Because a bunch of people raised on Disney have become all in their feelings and offended by everything,” one user wrote of the change, according to The Beast. “And Disney not only accepted it, but encouraged it.”

“They’re not going to admit it, but the Disney company succumbed to a very strong minority of people claiming that the movie the attraction was based on was racist,” another user wrote. “What they didn’t understand was that Walt created Song of the South in part to help restore race relations.”

It’s unclear exactly what this user meant by “repairing race relations,” given that the film was heavily criticized by the NAACP when it was first released in 1946 over concerns that it glorified slavery.

“(The NAACP), however, regrets that, in an effort not to offend audiences in the North and South, the production contributes to perpetuating a dangerously glorified image of slavery,” the organization wrote in a statement to the era.

“‘Chanson du Sud’ unfortunately gives the impression of an idyllic master-slave relationship which is a distortion of the facts,” the press release continued.