Audrey Leung
Hong Kong Disneyland first opened in 2005. I still vividly remember visiting for the first time that year with my family, to celebrate my and my younger sister’s sixth and fourth birthdays. We were spoilt that weekend, roaming the park for two whole days and even staying in the Disney-themed hotel overnight. It was the best birthday. Like many other young children, I grew up consuming Disney storylines and fantasies, like candy.
It’s March 2021 now and today I visit again. It’s been nearly five years since my last visit. The park has been closed for several months due to the pandemic. They are offering a 2-for-1 deal on their tickets. My friend Zehra and I decide to purchase them, because it would be silly to pass up this rare offer, we say.
Adventureland
Disneyland parks are demarcated by themed zones, or “lands”. They typically revolve around Disney storylines and have formed the core structures and backbone of parks across the globe for decades. The kid-friendly themes and names are often juxtaposed with colonial underpinnings, though, evidently in this equation of “primitivity” with “adventure”.
Walking into Adventureland, I’m surrounded by the inviting wash of greenery around me. This section is made to bring to life the desolate jungle home of Tarzan. It’s set somewhere vaguely in Africa. From what I recall, Adventureland’s best attraction is the “Jungle River Cruise”. A thrilling ten-minute expedition, where voyagers navigate rough waters and encounter exotic animals, headhunters, and other startling surprises. Excited for the experience, Zehra and I board a cruise, named the “Congo Queen”.
It’s quiet for the first couple minutes as the boat drifts over to the first sight. I see two small elephants, a baby and its mother. The baby playfully lifts its trunk up from beneath the surface of the river, before shooting water in our direction. The elephants look surprisingly realistic, Zehra and I comment, their color and texture look so real.
The elephants have small ears and no tusks. I think they are the kind commonly native to Asia. I’ve seen them while on holiday in Thailand.
Moving onto the next sight, we approach two more elephants. They are proportionately bigger in size, darker in color, with big fan-like ears and long white tusks. These look like the African bush elephant. The inconsistency is humorous, I note.
BANG! BANG! CLANG! CLANG! As the cruise continues further into the jungle, the noises get louder. There is not one distinguishable type of noise or language detectable. Anything sounding remotely coherent, however, would be contrary to the expedition’s purpose. Broadcasted on a large, rustic-looking sign, its intention is to explore a land in which “civilization is left behind”.
An unpleasant cacophony banging metals and high-pitched shrieking and disrupts the air. Zehra cups her hands over her ears in annoyance. Did they have to make it SO loud?
To my left, there is a totem pole with four men climbing up it. Towards the bottom of the pole are three dark-skinned, “indigenous” men climbing up. Their faces are enveloped with anger and determination. A fearful white man hangs at the very top, desperate to escape the indigenous headhunters. The narrative of danger and fear of the three “indigenous” men here is hard to miss, but all too unsurprising.
Nearing the end of the journey, the boat stops for the last sight. It’s an Indian cobra hissing violently at us. More inconsistency, it’s not so funny anymore.
The noise dies down as we near the end of the boat ride. “Welcome back to civilization!” the boat driver cheerfully announces.
It’s a Small World
Located in Fantasyland, “It’s a Small World” is dubbed by Disney as “The Happiest Cruise That Ever Sailed”. Unlike the “Jungle River Cruise”, this one is a whimsical boat ride, in which passengers coast past a jubilant chorus of child puppets from around the globe.
Festooned with fairy lights and pretty pastel colors throughout, the ride takes you through each of the seven continents. The song “It’s a small world” is sung repeatedly throughout the entire course. The music and appearance of the set and children vary from continent to continent. Zehra and I board our boat. The song slowly comes to life.
This first exhibit, Europe, is nothing special, nothing unexpected. The song plays at its standard, normal version.
Next up is Africa. I notice that the puppets are monolithic throughout, each puppet painted a dark brown, with the same short, afro-textured hair. There are far less children here compared to Europe. Instead, around half of the children are replaced with clusters of giraffes, elephants, monkeys, gorillas, and hippos. Animal sounds and drums overshadow the melodic song.
After a few more continents, the boat drifts towards a mysterious exhibit, named “Rainforest”. This must be the Amazon rainforest, I say. My expectations of abundant greenery and nature are thwarted as instead, we pass through an ominous darkness. So dark I can barely see anything. I spot one or two parrots, perhaps. They could have made this one more appealing instead of pure darkness. It’s probably meant to instill a sense of fear.
Asia is the second to last exhibition. In the Middle East portion, most of the girl puppets are covered up, their clothing revealing nothing but their eyes. Those that aren’t covered resemble belly dancers. The belly dancers’ heads move dramatically from right side to left side. An attempt to depict the “head slide” dance.
I think we’re in China now. I see what looks like puppets dressed as farmers. The style of the puppets has remained the same throughout. However, there’s an exception here. Instead of normal eyes like the rest of the dolls, these farmers have small lines for their eyes.
We approach the last exhibit. Instead of a continent, it’s named “It’s a Small World”. The global children come together in peace, holding hands. The original version of the song, played in the European exhibition, is playing here. The children’s physical features remain the same, but the clothing is different. They are entirely white in color and culturally downplayed. Heavily Europeanized in style.
It’s been long time since I’ve given such undivided attention to Disney, yet alone visited Disneyland. But today, the darker truths behind Disney’s harmful essentializing neoliberal practices were ostensibly revealed to me.
The supposed length Disney goes to create a diverse and inclusive array of characters and storylines really serves no purpose other than to not only essentialize and make static non-Western cultures and people but also erase identity, in which Europe and European constitutes the norm above all others. But because Disney is the entertainment pinnacle of so many childhoods, this truth hides behind a veil of innocent ideology.
I really hope that Disney does its part to decolonize and address its problematic ethnic representations and stereotypes. Racism and racialized ideologies are nurtured from a young age. They stick, they infiltrate. Informing our ways of thinking and being in extremely harmful ways.
People, histories, and cultures are not jungle animals, belly dancing, and slanted eyes.
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