Kaiya Lakes | The Chronicle
Zootopia 2, which hit movie theaters last November, has resurfaced since its initial release, only this time with a slew of negative comments surrounding it. Many people online have begun to condemn the content of the film, arguing that it was too “woke” because of concepts such as LGBTQ characters and the open critique of class systems.
What I think these people fail to realize is that not only were socially conscious themes present in the first Zootopia movie, but that virtually every Disney movie dating back to the 1967 release of The Jungle Book has contested traditional stereotypes and embodied parallelism to the societal issues of their time.
Zootopia 1 covered virtually every social challenge prevalent at the time of its release in 2016. Racism was explored through the flashbacks into Nick Wilde’s adolescence as a fox and the concept of “predator versus prey,” sexism was a heavy theme as we watched Judy Hopps navigate the setbacks of being a woman in a male-dominated field and political corruption was conveyed through Zootopia Assistant Mayor Bellwether’s attempts to manipulate the police force for her own personal gain. All of this more or less reflected the struggles of actual American politics while they were actively happening in society.
2016 was full of activism and political protest, from the deeply divisive presidential race between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton to the concern for women’s reproductive rights with Trump’s threats to overturn Roe v Wade. Additionally, there were campaigns deeply rooted in racist and xenophobic tendencies, titling immigrants as rapists and calling for a “Muslim travel ban” ‒ not to mention the “birther” conspiracy against Barack Obama.
But 2016 is not where this parallel ends ‒ or begins. Disney has long been known for its spin on fairytale stories, or more specifically, their feministic efforts to create a franchise that builds young girls up and teaches strength and female empowerment. Mulan (1998) famously challenged traditional Chinese culture, following the story of a young girl who cuts her hair and acts as a man in order to save her father from the inevitability of fighting alongside the Chinese Imperial army in the Second Sino-Japanese War. The song “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” serves as an attempt to communicate what traits are needed in a soldier. The lyrics describe fighters as “swift as the coursing river,” with “the force of a great typhoon,” and “the strength of a raging fire.” It is no coincidence that these precedents are the written characteristics of femininity and womanhood in ancient Chinese texts.
The world-renowned film Pocahontas is yet another example, as its 1995 release fell less than a month after the Attorney General’s memorandum, which stated the federal government had to work with Native American tribes on a government-to-government basis, which aimed to respect tribal sovereignty as the “supreme law of the land.” Pocahontas famously explores tribal culture and the consequences of being a Native American on a “white man’s land,” challenging the notion that land was created simply to conquer. In this film, Pocahontas sings “you can own the earth and still, all you’ll own is earth until you can paint with all the colors of the wind,” criticizing the ideas of land expansion and property ownership ‒ something many world governments have never stopped craving ‒ and forcing the conquistador John Smith to take note of the beauty in the world around him.
In more recent years, Disney’s 2023 production Elemental served as a metaphor for prejudice surrounding immigration while simultaneously learning to embrace their own cultural identity ‒ a topic that has become incredibly ubiquitous in the US in the past decade or so. Set in a place where fire, water, earth and air (the elements) coexist, the story criticizes the hate culture surrounding immigration through their display of social tension, discrimination and barriers between the four elements, ultimately serving as a message of acceptance of those who are different, illustrating that opposites can exist contemporaneously and even thrive together.
If Disney continues with this long-established pattern of recognizing and regurgitating the real-world circumstances within their movies, we have much more to expect ‒ and we had better start getting used to blatantly hidden symbolism, glaring metaphors and unmistakable parallelism to the obstacles we face as an entire race of people. Though their messages may hide behind catchy songs and childlike dialogue, stories always go beyond the surface and it is time we all start paying attention to what they are really telling us.
