Comments on: Disney’s Black Princess – Maddy, I Mean Tiana?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 20:15:17 +0000

For the person asking about the historically incorrect name, it most likely has to do with the fact that the name was stolen from another writer. Read this article for more info.

http://filmtvindustry.suite101.com/article.cfm/disneys_princess_tiana_vs_princess_briana

and this

http://www.blacknews.com/news/just_like_me_books201.shtml

By: rcherie

rcherie — Fri, 22 May 2009 05:28:44 +0000

while i did have a few reservations on various aspects of the film i still feel this is a wonderful step in the right direction for our young black girls..all young girls. Thank you NOLA for informing us a little better on whats real. Now my issue is her name…Tiana? For real? Yes it is a pretty name but i definitely agree that it should have reflected the time period or HER culture not OURS…

By: Woman from NOLA

Woman from NOLA — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:52:13 +0000

Some of you are ridiculous. You didnt hear any of the hawaians complaining that Lilo is a short fat ugly little girl with a bad attitude problem. It was about the story…not how the main character looked. And you dont hear midgets complaining about Snow whites Dwarves. GET OVER IT!!! No ugly women came forward causing a stink about Cinderellas step sisters being ugly. Seriously-you could potentially view every movie from every genre and find something offensive to some group of people if thats what youre looking for. I think Tiana is a beautiful princess and i think its wonderful that ALL races of girls now have an african-american princess to love and look up to. Now, I know that in the twenties there were other jobs for black women-not just chamber maids. But in New Orleans in the 1920′s, thats about all they would have been allowed to do-or work in the fields, but even thats not likely because they are not as strong as the men. Many black women, white women, Hispanics, and asians were hired to do domestic work for rich people–and not much has changed. Next time you stay in a hotel pay attention to the cleaning staff-ill bet my life you will see at least one WOMAN from every race. As far as the voodoo thing goes-are you surprised really? new orleans is famous for its voodoo background. gimme a frickin break. and as far as her prince being a white man-do you really think thats impossible for that time period? guess again-where do you think the creoles came from? Im sure most of you are yankees who have never been to new orleans-so i can see how yall can have all of this misconstrued as being racist, but i was born and raised in new orleans and am very familliar with the history of this amzing city. We always have been and always will be very different from the rest of the country. As far as i can tell, the Disney writers have captured alot of what is important and relevant to that time period in new orleans. and anyway…i dont think the princesses race is stated in the book, but there are a few refernces to her aunt who practices voodoo, which would leave one to assume that she is of african descent, since that is where voodoo began. IF YOU STOP LOOKING FOR RACISM, YOULL STOP FINDING IT!!!

By: Disney Unveils New "The Princess And The Frog" Toy Line | Black And Married With Kids

Wed, 18 Feb 2009 12:03:23 +0000

[...] anticipated “The Princess And The Frog” toy line. If you’ll remember there were a few hiccups early on in the movies production but Disney has attempted to iron out any wrinkles and has pressed [...]

By: The Gracefulone

The Gracefulone — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 02:39:57 +0000

Here is a bit of context and perspective on black women in the 1920s. There was a bit more going on in the country than chamber maids.

http://witheyeslikemine.blogspot.com/2008/08/disneys-black-princess.html

The Gracefulones last blog post..Week #3

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 23:16:17 +0000

Presumably, a Disney princess in the 1920s would have been born between 1895 & 1911. So, say the 1900s.

Tiana was not in the top 1,000 names in America in the 1900s, while Madeline (and various spelling variations) and Madie (but not Maddy) were.

http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/decades/names1900s.html

In fact, Tiana did not appear in the top 1,000 names in America until the 1970s.

I realize that this is just a Disney fantasy, but why give her a historically inaccurate name?

By: The Princess And The Frog - Trailer | Black And Married With Kids

The Princess And The Frog - Trailer | Black And Married With Kids — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 02:27:31 +0000

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By: HomelandColors

HomelandColors — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:37:15 +0000

Wow. I think I understand why Disney waited so long ot have a Black Princess. It's kind of a catch 22 situation. It doesn't really matter what they do in this movie they're going to catch hell for something. HomelandColorss last blog post..Children of the Civil Rights

By: MINA

MINA — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:22:03 +0000

Keep it Trill, as much as I hate some of what your response states, I will agree that some of the crap is true. Disney has long been a network that I have disagreed with from day one. It is abundantly clear that they only cater to white people, or ethnic people that look white (just my own opinion). High School Musical in my opinion was a half a**ed rendition of throwing in a few black or biracial in the mix (only 2 mind you) and calling it a day because the real focus is once again on the white kids. The “Frog Princess” in my opinion was insulting from the jump. Then to have her as a chambermaid (if little kids even know what that is; cleaning crap like urine and defacation of other people) of a white chick is even more insulting. On top of that she needs a love interest. Why not a nice boy, if they want to cater to black people more, make him light skinned, because we cover the bases with complexion. Voodoo is a word I really believe people view negatively, just call her a Mystic fairy Godmother who has powers that originate from nature, our ancestors, and the heavens (covered my bases there).
Now with that who ABB thing, i don’t think young black girls need to hear this. it should be about personal pride, overcoming something difficult and transforming into a more confident and wise person. Black girls need to feel that they have a place in the magical world of fairytales too. And this includes finding themselves desireable to guys. Please spare them the foolishness that is black boys in highschool who are experiencinf low self-esteem and self hate just like the fools on dating sites that post ABB. Once black men stop hating and blaming, and start re-evaluating themselves, perhaps the rest of the world can finally get a break.

By: Regular Black Guy Posts July 23, 2008 « Regular Black Guy’s Blog

Regular Black Guy Posts July 23, 2008 « Regular Black Guy’s Blog — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 08:44:58 +0000

[...] Disney’s Black Princess – Maddy, I Mean Tiana? via Black And Married With Kids by TheDad on 7/22/08 Disney is trying to slip out of some deep doo-doo at the moment. A few months back they were happy to announce the creation of their first black princess but… since then they’ve been trying to back track to take out any references in the film that may seem racist or offensive. Like… her name [...] [...]