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Anime Rocks!

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August 29, 2005
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:iconatomicfireball:
The original version of Disney's classic "Fantasia" featured a character called Sunflower, a little black centaur handmaiden. Sunflower was an extremely insulting caricature, a blithely racist stereotype of the "servile grinning nigger" variety. Her sole function in the film was to eagerly polish and shine the hooves of the tall, sexy Aryan centaur women who glared down their petite noses at this scuttling servant whenever she got underfoot in her haste to make Mistress pretty.

Of course you've seen Fantasia, you know that the Aryan centaurs end up meeting a bunch of hot equally Aryan centaur boys and, presumably, getting it on to make cute Aryan centaur babies. But what becomes of Sunflower? Well, here's the answer: she's eliminated.

When the racial climate of America changed in the 60s, the portrayal of such insulting stereotypes in movies and television became politically incorrect, and Disney (fearing accusations of racism) deleted Sunflower from Fantasia for the theatrical re-release of the film. Her troubling presence was simply cropped out of the movie (though you can still see the Aryans she was pampering).

Disney has reportedly gone as far as to deny such a character ever existed at all--but on the Internet, NOTHING can be hidden from the world forever.

This is how we deal with our ugly past: we deny it, trivialize it, gloss over it with pretty distractions and wishful thinking. Doing so, we deny ourselves a glimpse of the compelling reality of naked history, warts and all. The well-meaning rush to unmake evil deeds by hiding them from the critical eye of modern sensibilities does nothing to honor the people who lived and struggled in those different times.

Her existence may be news to generations of Disney fans, but she's been here all along, waiting patiently offscreen for us to acknowledge her, and the American past that created her.

And so, this is not a fanart. It's a little wishful thinking of my own.

This is my Sunflower, who never served a mistress.
:icon:
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:iconhawkheart29:
~Hawkheart29 May 4, 2012  New member
While I agree that the idea behind her was wrong, she should have not been cut; for a wise man once said "those who don't learn from histor are doomed to repeat it" now I ask you, how are we suppose to learn from history if it is erased?

--
Credendo vides - By believing, one sees. :rose:
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:iconwardude69:
~wardude69 Mar 5, 2012
yet.... the zebra- featherfan wenches to the wine-god were kept in some versions!

sure, they were awesome hot, but fat-lipped, jungle-haired...
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:iconskinnedkitten:
~skinnedkitten Feb 4, 2012
Oh you have taken me back to my pleasantly ignorant childhood! I never saw her as a child though and it was a shocker when I uncovered the ugly truth about Disney. It was all the more insulting that she was a little donkey centaur too, they just had to take the insult that little bit further. Your rendition of Sunflower as an adorable little foal girl makes my day! I so wish her and the other two handmaidens had gotten a little centaur boy also!
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:iconkoko-pelli:
~Koko-pelli Jan 12, 2012  Hobbyist Traditional Artist
Oh I wouldn't give Disney such a bad rap for creating a character such as Sunflower. I mean it was the 1940's when this film came out so of course the people of that time would not know better.
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:iconatomicfireball:
~AtomicFireball Feb 2, 2012  Professional Digital Artist
I agree, this sort of thing is definitely a relic from a very different time--the real problem was Disney trying to cover up that it ever happened, then continuing to be dicks about it.

--
If I visited an art gallery and saw this, I think I would be offended. Many others have already been offended. So why can you post this on the web, because it's just like posting it in an art gallery. DeviantArt is literally an online art gallery.
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:iconcjrpos:
~Cjrpos Jan 8, 2012
I really like this.
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:iconglossolaliablack:
~glossolaliablack Dec 16, 2011
Check out Coilhouse, you're being featured!
[link]

--
***

I am a comedian and poet, so anything that doesn't get a laugh … is a poem.

- Bill Hicks
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:iconatomicfireball:
~AtomicFireball Dec 16, 2011  Professional Digital Artist
WHOA! I am so happy right now. Thanks for the heads-up, L. This made my day. I had no idea other people were drawing SF and the other 'taurs of color besides me. D'awwwww.

--
If I visited an art gallery and saw this, I think I would be offended. Many others have already been offended. So why can you post this on the web, because it's just like posting it in an art gallery. DeviantArt is literally an online art gallery.
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:iconredblackroseblude:
Mood: Love ~redBLaCKroseBLuDe Dec 15, 2011
and i absolutely love her, and i think i would have preferred that disney had made the other centaurs of different colors, besides blond-blue eyed as is implied by "aryan"
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:iconspirit-of-the-moon:
~Spirit-Of-The-Moon Dec 5, 2011  Hobbyist Traditional Artist
I always thought it was such a shame that Sunflower got the short end of the stick, what with being that gross show of racism in Disney, because from the small clips I've seen of her, she was absolutely adorable. She's adorable in this picture as well C:

It's a shame that we think that we can so easily erase the ugly parts of the past. How do you learn from what you pretend didn't happen?

--
Fear not the road before you
The broken stones, the empty trees
Mother will protect her child
Wherever that road leads.

I'm 17 and I'm an independent business owner! Curious? Click here and note me!
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