After Backlash, Disney Covers Up Culturally Offensive Term On Ride

Comments for After Backlash, Disney Covers Up Culturally Offensive Term On Ride

Tom Sawyer

Credit: Disney

64 Comments

  1. Chris

    People need to stop being so oversensitive. They need look at the time frame it is set in and realize that there were things said they that would be politically incorrect today and that it is OK to acknowledge that, in fact we should acknowledge it so that we learn from the past and don’t repeat our mistakes all over again.

    1. Michelle

      Agree 100%

    2. Rodney Simonson

      I do not fault the intent, but… Mark Twain wrote an American classic, and that was the name of a prominent character. To use a term that will, sooner or later, become politically incorrect, why do we continue to whitewash history? People who take offense do so as a matter of choice for self agrandizement. On the other hand, Disney gets publicity and props from progressives, so the planet continues to spin.

      1. Larry Mullins

        History is history….Disney is trying to change history and not learning from it….only reason they cave is to try and save face in the public eye so as not deter the flow of money to Disney

    3. Victor Nazarian

      I believe there is an additional problem here involving appropriation or misappropriation of cultural affront. People who are not associated in any way with a culture, ethnic group or race are falsely assuming ‘virtual membership’ in or ‘agency’ on behalf of one of the potentially affronted groups in order to grant themselves the righteous privilege to object to things on behalf of that group. This leads to people incorrectly and inappropriately claiming to represent the point of view of others and then protest or attack innocent individuals and groups on behalf of people or groups when they have no right to do so. In many cases this ends up causing harassment to others to force a change that does no significant good to anyone and obscures the reality of the needs of those in genuine need.

      This would be like someone who is not an American Indian claiming that accurate references to the massacre and enslavement of the Pequot Indians in New England in the 1640s should be suppressed because it might offend American Indians. If the reality of history and past culture is completely suppressed the current culture looses the ability to properly understand current issues.

      1. Rox

        We’re cancelling Mark Twain now? When does this insanity end? It is smoke and mirrors to deflect attention away from real issues like inflation and crime.

  2. TotalDramaDisney

    I REALLY don’t care, either way. I don’t even think the people upset about Disney changing Tom Sawyer Island have ever even BEEN on Tom Sawyer Island. Heck! I’VE never been on Tom Sawyer Island, and I’m not upset bout Disney changing it.

    1. Paul Stirewalt

      How many indians were upset by this sign? Did they remove the indian village along the river too? Pretty soon nobody will know the indians ever existed!

      1. ROGER D STEVENS

        I have Indian blood and I am not offended and niether is any of my family. This is a bunch of crap. Suits using this as an excuse.

    2. CAWLing

      Drama, because unlike them, you are not mediocre white person trying to pretend your “history is being erased”

  3. BMW

    This is stupid
    1. There was per mark twains own words a injun Joe
    2 Tom Sawyer book are a piece of history.
    Leave stuff alone already.
    What now we have to go to book burning because there are things in them that offend someone.
    Get over yourselves.
    Leave stuff alone

    1. Kris

      BMW you are the voice of reason. They are also going after To Kill a Mockingbird. Stop the book burning

    2. George Cole

      Agree 100%.

    3. Lisa

      I so agree

    4. Rox

      Fahrenheit 451 doesn’t seem so fictional these days.

      1. Mike

        Neither does Demolition Man with Stallone and Snipes.

  4. TotalDramaDisney

    If Native Americans visiting the park are offended, then why not change it? Just because you’re not offended — just because you don’t think it is a big deal, does that mean others shouldn’t?

    We’re not talking about an ancient treasure here, and Disney is not a museum of cultural antiquities. It’s a modern theme park meant to entertain today’s visitors. ALL of today’s visitors.

    I think the bigger question is why altering this small decoration offends anyone. Is Disney going to be less fun now? How so?

    1. Drew

      If a significant number of Native American guests who have read the book and understand the context are truly offended, then yes. They should be heard and respected. Unfortunately, it’s more likely a bunch of elitist white people, who haven’t read the book, sitting around a conference room deciding what is racist for them.

      1. Donald

        Let’s be honest…it is a bunch of suits sitting around a conference room deciding what is in the long term financial interest of the company. Nobody is buying tickets for the “Injun Joe” sign. It doesn’t matter to them if they see it as a potential liability it doesn’t matter if they have had a single complaint yet.

  5. Sue

    This stuff is getting out of hand. Everyday someone changes something bc it MIGHT a offend someone. Damn let’s just change history all together. And start all over.

    1. Jordan

      People are getting offended though. It’s not a might. Just because you don’t see it as offensive, doesn’t mean it’s not there

      1. Adrian shapiro

        But it’s the way Twain wrote the character you can’t just erase classic literature

      2. Sue

        How about that I’m highly offended that Disney is changing it? Does that matter?
        Disney needs to stop it was the crap. I highly doubt anyone actually complained.

      3. Reba

        The old adage “the squeaky wheel gets the oil” holds true. Thin skinned, easily offended lib/Dems make the most noise so companies give in to their demands just to shut them up and save their business.

        If we erase history, good or bad, we are doomed to repeat it because we learned nothing.

        1. Kabsaf

          You’re an idiot. When was the last time that you were racially dispared or discriminated against?? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

          Sit down and shut your trap, Troll Karen!!

      4. Ken Brenner

        Hi Jordan. I see your comments often on this site, and respect your right to have an opinion. But, if this is a part of the book and history, I see no reason to change it. Plus, like Splash Mountain, one NEVER heard anything about things being offensive until the WOKE culture got going in June, 2020. Tom Sawyer’s Island is a fun and innocent place to go. Like Splash Mountain, it had nothing racist about it.

  6. Melissa

    The book was written in a time when overt racism was acceptable, and we as a country have moved past that. Disney’s aim is to be as inclusive as possible, so I don’t see an issue with removing offensive slurs from an old ride.

    1. Roberta

      Remove “Tom Sawyer” Island then. For God’s sake everything has become politically incorrect and offensive to someone and must be remove because of the very thought of it existing. The majority of the population would not even know this was even here had it not been so widely published it had been removed.

    2. S1

      Except it’s not a slur. And the only guests who matter are the purists including those who were going when Walt was alive and their descendants. When I seize control of Disney, it’s those guests who I will be catering to when I make Disney great again. I will remove inclusion as a Disney key and won’t care if I offend the “woke” crowd. They’re a tiny minority. I mean what are they going to do? Boycott all Disney products? March on the parks with picket signs?

  7. Gary

    If someone’s offended by something like that… WHO CARES?? There are plenty of things I get offended by, but I don’t use it as a victimhood crutch. We’re turning into a country of pansies.

  8. Adrian Shapiro

    I’m sorry but that’s what Twain called him in the book it was literally his name. People need to stop getting hurt over simple things and stop trying to change history like it didn’t happen

  9. Mike G

    Enough with the cancel culture nonsense. The Disney corporation has become softer than fresh dog crap at this point.

  10. Marc

    Pussies

    1. ROGER D STEVENS

      Correct observation, I totally agree.

  11. Dawn

    You can not alter history no matter what you try to do. It is our past. Taking down monuments, changing street names, taking iconic figures off of boxes of food still will not change history. Disney should keep the name on the boat as Twain wrote Tom Sawyer this way. Twain’s book can’t be rewritten to satisfy everyone. The book, written in a time period, which is unlike today. It really is getting out of hand. We deal with something every day which most likely will hit a nerve or make us look at something again. Ignore it, walk away, don’t watch it, and don’t make a big deal out of it. No one is making you look, listen, or watch whatever it is. Just like TV shows, no one is twisting your arm making you watch the show or listening to the radio.

    1. ROGER D STEVENS

      AMEN!!!!!!!

    2. Gern Blanston

      Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn are fiction, not history!

      -Gern

  12. Trisec

    Then all of Tom Sawyer island should be shut down. Isn’t it based on a racist novel from the 19th century?

  13. Rroe

    Disney typically caves to the WOKE society in all demands. It’s all about MONEY to Disney and what ever it takes to take all your money Disney will do this. Attacking Disney characters will never end. Now they are going after the Seven Dwarfs. Where is going to end?? Never will as long as Disney can make their millions from the Rich that attend the parks that could care less.

  14. PJ

    WOW…really! The world we live in now is so totally insane. I absolutely do not agree with this. Enough is enough already.

  15. ROGER D STEVENS

    My Great Grandfather was a full blooded Native American, he would of said all these cry babies should shut the Hell up. People are out to make waves or a group trying to make a name for themselves. This new gerneration of wuzzies should just stay away if they don,t like what they see. Disney is run my spineless, overpaid, Cry Babies and Wuzzies.

  16. Kenr

    We have become a country of crybabies. Sorry if that observation hurts anyone’s fragile feelings. Gees.

    1. Mike

      The fact you had to add those last 2 sentences has indicated how far we have come from 2 generations ago.

  17. No Ticket

    Glad to see Disney is caving to pressure from the overly sensitive and barely literate.

    I’m glad I’ll be able to tell me grandkids that I experienced Disney Parks before the company turned into a pathetic dumpster fire

  18. Mike

    Pretty soon we will no longer have names cause you may have appropriated it from another culture and we will be know by a number. As you birth a child, it will be given the next number up in the system. Oh how I love my child, 329,728,002. They are just a unique soul.

  19. Mason

    I don’t care actually. I like Tom Sawyer Island , but I couldn’t name a single name of the rafts that take you there. Still if this was offensive why didn’t we get any news about Native American Rights Groups that found this offensive? Seriously Disney is losing money with this. The parks have not been the same since July 2020. I haven’t been since February 2020 aka the last month this world was sane. I’m tired of this woke crap at the People’s Republic of Disney World.

  20. mickeymouse3

    I’m offended by Bob Paycheck. Can we get rid of him too?
    Seriously, this “woke” garbage has to stop! History is history. Learn from it. Don’t repeat the bad. Continue with the good.

  21. Bill Hannigan

    They just announced they are getting rid of Pooh because the president of China is offended by him! Ridiculous!

  22. Mason

    What’s next?
    Abolish the Florida resident discount since Florida was a Confederate State during the Civil War.
    Paint the Cinderella Castle entirely blue because it’s white and castles show power meaning it’s a form of white supremacy since it’s a white castle
    Have a day for the unvaccinated and a day for the vaccinated
    Destroy It’s a small world due to “cultural appropriation”
    Rename The Magic/Animal Kingdom to the Magic/animal Queendom. Oh no I said too much…

  23. Not a sheep

    Political correctness run amok. From Dixie Landings to George Floyd Mountain to Injun Joe. It’s insane. Well… gotta go walk my dog now… oops, sorry… gotta go walk my Canine American.

  24. Steph

    The amount of whining and griping over the removal is so much worse and more annoying than anyone who actually complained about the boat.

    No one cares about Tom Sawyer island. No one goes to Tom Sawyer island. And yeah, it’s probably all going to be torn down soon. Yeah, the book is a classic, but Disney isn’t a museum. How can y’all be complaining that everyone’s a “wuss” when you’re crying over a boat you never noticed? Disney is gonna trash it soon anyway.

    1. Ken Brenner

      Hi Steph. If you don’t like Tom Sawyer’s Island, fine – I respect your right to have an opinion. I’m 69 and love to go there, and hope it never goes away. I have a family tradition of taking the children / Grandchildren there and getting a picture on the upper rampart of Fort Langhorn. We always enjoyed going out the escape tunnel and walking through the caves. The small “mountain” on first island is very nice, with a flowing stream, and a nice view at the top. It is a nice place. If you’d like to see what it looks like, I have a movie about it on my youtube channel. 🙂

  25. amd

    Mark Twain is a classic story it should be told the way it was written! What’s next Fahrenheit 451 Book, and movie,where they burn booked because it’s not politically correct!

  26. Alex

    We’ve been forced to remove Native American names on our schools, mascots and about everything else. My local paper now begs for donations to report on Indigenous Affairs, yet can’t even cover local kids high school sports. So what’s left to remember of the Native Americans? Yep Casinos. So let’s stop playing games and just rename the canoe to Casino Joe.

  27. Marsha

    Unbelievable! Disneyland is a FANTASY park where make believe is real and you leave the real world behind. People get but hurt over the stupidity of things. Disney is starting to fold for everything and anyone.

  28. Darknightblade

    I can see it now. Just ride after ride, of blank clear plastic automatons (cant offend if there’s NO color), standing around singing, “It’s a bland world, after all…”

  29. Greg

    Really unless you are an American Indian your opinion on this matter means nothing. Let’s hear from some of the folks who could be rightfully offended.

  30. Ronald McSantis

    You guys really need to calm down. The world isn’t ending because someone thought it would be nice to not have a sign displaying derogatory language in a theme park intended for entertainment.

    Nobody’s taking something precious away from you. Nobody’s forcing you to sign off on this change. Honestly, people complaining about this sound like toddlers complaining about not being able to eat ice cream for every meal. It’s time to grow up, gang.

    1. Kabsaf

      Finally… Some common sense. Most of these comments are referring to those people who were offended or thought it would best NOT to have these words on the boat as crybabies. Just the opposite!! Grow up, people. The experience hasn’t changed. It’s just not racist or culturally insensitive anymore. What’s wrong with that?

    2. Ken Brenner

      Hi. I think part of the problem is Disney’s caving in to a very small minority of our population that looks for anything and everything to force their beliefs on everyone (what some call the Wokers). It used to be one could go to WDW to get away from all the cultural and political problems of our society. That is no longer the case. We are more divided now than we were in the late-60s and early 70s. No more escape from all that to the “magic” and innocence of the traditional Disney. Very sad…

  31. Alex

    Tom Sawyer Island and everything in it was created based on the book. If the current Disney executives find certain words or slogans offensive, then they should change the whole attraction and replace it with something else. Don’t call it Tom Sawyers Island anymore.
    By changing little things here and there, they move away from the original intent of the theme attraction. Yes, I do agree that the name may be offensive to many people, but I don’t agree removing it is the right call. Perhaps it can serve to remind people of how racist and insensitive the USA was in those days and start a conversation with those who are seeing this for the first time. How can people understand and learn from our past if we continue to erase it or hide it?

  32. L

    People need to get over it. I’m sick of the sensitivity and sick of businesses and companies caving so someone isn’t offended. Please. It’s history people…..it’s history Disney.

  33. Of you continue to scrub clean all that offends someone somewhere, eventually your left with… nothingness.

    How boring and bland.

    Where does it end?

    Should we ban chili powder from use since we’re not all culturally equal? I feel it’s been misappropriated from my culture by the white man in his cooking..

    Cancel culture needs to be canceled. One day, not too far off, the children will rebel against their canceling parents, and EVERYTHING will be back on the table, but worse. You cannot push without a pull.

    Mark my words, you will all reap what you sew..

  34. Ken Brenner

    Hi. I think part of the problem is Disney’s caving in to a very small minority of our population that looks for anything and everything to force their beliefs on everyone (what some call the Wokers). It used to be one could go to WDW to get away from all the cultural and political problems of our society. That is no longer the case. We are more divided now than we were in the late-60s and early 70s. No more escape from all that to the “magic” and innocence of the traditional Disney. Very sad…

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