I've been silent so far on the issue of Disney and racism, primarily because I haven't been on this list very long, but I feel compelled to respond to David Desser's comments, especially when he writes: > Is it racism if no one notices? Do you, Simone, or others, > really believe that kids, THE PRIMARY AUDIENCE FOR _THE LION KING_ have ANY > idea who does the voices for animated characters? That kids from 3 to say, > 10 or 1, or older still, really have a clue who is black or white behind > the screen or care if they do know ? Does racism in a film always have to be overt, David? Would you grant that there's such a thing as covert racism that often goes unrecognized and unacknowledged, and is just as devastating and problematical? I don't think of myself as a racist--in fact consciously work not to be--and yet as a white male I find I still on occasion have racist stereotypes and assumptions pop into my head unwarranted. From a semitotic perspective, culture "naturalizes" racism in subtle and unconscious ways that become easy to take for granted--ways that we are exposed to early on in our lives. This may or may not be an issue in _The Lion King_, but why automatically discount the possibility? Pat ---- To signoff SCREEN-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF SCREEN-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]