Ariel was my first favorite princess. She had red hair, like me, she was rebellious and thoughtful and curious and a princess and a mermaid. We were so alike! I fought with my parents, I wanted to explore the world, and I wanted to be a mermaid, desperately. So Ariel was everything. I would play Ariel, much to the distress of both my parents. Ariel and “The Little Mermaid” stepped forward to help me from my childhood. And now, she has the chance to do that again, in new ways.
If you hadn’t guessed from the beginning paragraph, this article is about “The Little Mermaid,” and since The Student Movement deals in things modern, this article is meant to focus on the live action film of “The Little Mermaid” whose teaser trailer was released on September 10 of this year. Unfortunately, this remake’s casting has been met with huge waves of racism, hatred, and anger. This recent, loud anger over the casting of Halle Bailey, a Black singer and actress, reflects the racist outcries against diverse casting choices in other shows based on popular, white dominated media, like the “Lord of the Rings” and the casting of the show “The Rings of Power,” or the casting of the “House of Dragons” show which is an expansion of the “Game of Thrones” universe.
If you want to find articles that delve more deeply into the ways that this nerd racism presents itself, here, here, and here are some articles you can check out. This article is not meant to be a deep analysis of the backlash itself. Nor is it meant to be a rebuttal of every trumped up excuse brought to the internet by cranky White people. This article is meant to tell the story of the Little Mermaid in one little girl’s life and to point to reason and hope for this new story.
“The Little Mermaid” is one of my comfort movies. I watch it in French these days, since something about Jodi Benson singing Part of Your World bothers me (but that’s a personal issue). When I had a big fight with my parents about growing up, “The Little Mermaid” was the film I used to sort through how I felt about growing up and leaving home and needing to. I have always seen myself in Ariel, from before I can remember. She looks like me. I have that privilege: to have female characters and stories modeled after my own appearance. (Though Ariel was born years before me, after all, and I don’t think Ariel’s concept artists have ever met me).
Did you know that only 1-2% of the world's population is redheaded? And yet the media is full of stories about us. Three of the classic or neo-classic Disney princesses have red hair, while only one Disney princess is Black. All this is to say, that I, who represent less than 2% of the world’s population, have been inundated with representation my whole life.Doesn’t it seem time to flood the media with representation for a community that we as a world have done so much to harm and hold back? To see yourself in the stories you hear and see is so important. So why burden that potentiality, that movement toward a hope and a future, with hate and distrust? Why not look at how much this role means to Halle Bailey, and to all the people she represents? Let it be just that, meaningful and hopeful and representative.
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.