Song of the South - Wikipedia

I'm a storyteller who has been greatly influenced by other storytellers. I know. There's nothing unusual in that. All storytellers, indeed all performing artists have been influenced by those who came before. As a child of the American South, I was influenced by some of the best storytellers (it's a prized art form in the South) and many of those who came before me were greatly influenced by the storytelling tradition of black slaves who kept alive the wit and wisdom that they brought from Africa. Joel Chandler Harris made an epic accomplishment in transliterating their speech to record their stories in their vernacular even though recording devices were not available in those antebellum days. I remember struggling to read his book until I read it aloud to myself. Once I applied the pacing that I learned in listening to Southern speech patters, it became clear. Sadly, the Disney movie "Song of the South" has been locked away. It has been deemed racist. To be honest, I don't understand why. In the Wikipedia article it is averred that the "black vernacular and other qualities" were stereotypes. Of course they were. So what? They were factual. How can facts be racist? And while I'm not sure what "qualities" are being complained of, I always envied the strength and love exhibited in black families that I saw while growing up in Maryland. My own family was a dysfunctional mess. Now there are minorities of all types in the RP community and I hope that some are willing to step forward and educate me with respect. As of now, I see no advantage in hiding ones heritage unless one is ashamed of it. Yes, there are individuals who have brought shame on all of our communities, my father among them. But American culture was once a melting pot of many cultures that wove a colorful tapestry with the strength of steel. Sadly, it is torn and tattered and relegating "The Song of the South" to a cinema purgatory hasn't helped, has it?