Disney Orders Removal of Famous Song

(DailyVantage.com) – Disney has made a lot of changes in the last few years. Some have catered to the “woke” crowd, while others have served to strengthen the company and move on to modern times. A recent change has some wondering about the underlying connotations.

On January 22, Disney revealed it was removing a popular song, “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah,” from its Magic Kingdom park entrance. The song removal coincided with the shutdown of the popular ride Splash Mountain, which designers reportedly modeled around the movie “Song of the South.”

‘Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah’ Removed from Magic Kingdom Entrance Loophttps://t.co/XpLgo9mBko

— WDW News Today (@WDWNT) January 22, 2023

The closure of the attraction, which has operated for 30 years, came following allegations that it promoted racism. NBC News reported that in 1946, Walter White, a former NAACP executive secretary, criticized the movie, saying it “helps to perpetuate a dangerously glorified picture of slavery.” He pointed out that the film provided a distorted vision of an idyllic slave-master relationship which many descendants of slaves found offensive.

That wasn’t the only time “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” came under fire. Disney has removed it from various parks and attractions three other times. The Disneyland Resort Esplanade removed the song in 2020. The tune was also noticeably absent from the Festival of Fantasy Parade’s return in March 2022, and Tokyo Disneyland did away with it in September 2022. Additionally, in 2020, Executive Chairman Bob Iger confirmed Disney would not include the movie on its streaming platform.

Splash Mountain was also at the center of controversy. A petition in 2020 called for the ride’s removal, while a counter-petition defended its existence and said it was “absurd to pander to a small group of Disney haters” who failed to understand the story behind it.

The attraction won’t sit idle for long, though. The company has announced it already has plans to restructure it as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. The New Orleans-themed ride will center around the main character in “The Princess and the Frog.”