Disney Pulls Costume Depicting Brown-Skinned Demigod Maui

The Disney company recently released a new movie-themed costume in anticipation of the Halloween holiday. Almost as quickly, Disney discontinued the controversial costume in response to public outcry. As of today, Disney will no longer offer the full-body costume that depicts the Polynesian skin tone, dark hair and tribal tattoos of the Hawaiian demigod known as Maui.

Creating a boy’s Halloween costume that ties in with the upcoming November debut of a cartoon movie named Moana probably seemed like a good idea to Disney execs. The company has, after all, raked in a ton of cash with various princess-themed apparel in past years. This time, however, the depiction of a Pacific island hero went a bit too far. Blackface is no longer considered good humor, and neither is the costume that some are calling “Polyface.”

Chelsie Haunani Fairchild is among those who find the Disney costume offensive. A native Hawaiian who’s currently attending college in San Antonio, Fairchild decried Disney’s depiction of the demigod Maui, calling it “disgusting,” “inappropriate,” and “not okay.”

“Polyface is Disney’s new version of blackface. Let’s call it like it is, people. It [the costume] bastardizes Polynesians by doing something like that. You’re stripping away its integrity.”

In September, Honolulu television station KHON announced Disney’s intent to discontinue the controversial costume. Gizmodo noted how nice it is that the company is apologizing as Disney pulls the costume from store shelves.

“The team behind Moana has taken great care to respect the cultures of the Pacific Islands that inspired the film, and we regret that the Maui costume has offended some. We sincerely apologize and are pulling the costume from our website and stores.”

Is the costume as bad as people say? Maybe not.

Not everyone who’s seen the Disney costume is unhappy with its depiction of a beefy brown Polynesian in full tribal regalia. In fact, some find the public outcry that led to Disney pulling the costume quite silly. At least one Facebook user reached out to remind Ms. Fairchild and others that it’s Halloween and perhaps people shouldn’t take the brown-skin costume quite so seriously.

https://www.facebook.com/rich.grucz/posts/1223182681046576

Who is Maui and why do kids want to dress like him?

Maui is a shape-shifting half-god, half-man who features prominently in the mythology and history of many Pacific Island cultures, including Hawaii, Tonga, Samoa, Tahiti, and French Polynesia. According to legend, Maui fashioned a lasso with which he snared the sun, thus slowing its progress across the sky. Prior to this great feat, the sun moved too quickly for daily tasks, such as the ripening of fruit, preparation of meals, and the drying of fresh kapa cloth. To this day, indigenous people revere Mount Haleakala on the Hawaiian island of Maui as the home of the sun.

Top story: Disney pulls 'Moana' costume after critics lambast it as 'Polyface' https://t.co/j2H6Qv7MP9, see more https://t.co/LwpejMmwrh

— MaMaT CyBeR (@mamatcyber) September 22, 2016

Did people complain about Disney’s Pocahontas costume?

Actually, some did. In 2011, a number of concerned students at Ohio University banded together to form a group called Students Teaching About Racism in Society, or STARS. The group plastered posters on and off campus to spread the message, “We’re a culture, not a costume.” Calling race-based costumes “damaging,” the student protestors sought to end the common practice of donning cultural costumes at Halloween.

“There are many good reasons not to wear a costume that relies on racist stereotypes or caricatures. Costumes like these communicate negative ideas and assumptions about people of that race or ethnicity, and as this year’s posters say, that stigma stays with people of color long after you take the costume off. Wearing racist costumes also creates a hostile environment for people of that race, who may not appreciate seeing their identity, culture or community mocked and distorted while they’re trying to relax and have a good time. Costumes like these demonstrate disrespect and ignorance on behalf of the costume-wearer. Finally, they aren’t funny or creative. Really. This is one widely celebrated holiday where creativity is actively encouraged, and all a racist costume does is prove that the wearer knows how to recycle old, tired bigotry.”

And what about Moana?

Disney screenwriter John Musker and co-producer Ron Clements spent considerable time learning the legends of the South Pacific before composing the story that would become the movie Moana. During the course of their travels, the pair met with Polynesian historians, archeologists, tattoo artists, anthropologists, island elders, linguists, and dancers to form the Oceanic Story Trust. Tasked with creating an authentic narrative that honors the ancient traditions, the Oceanic Story Trust approved the story of a free-spirited young woman who finds and reclaims her identity with the help of the intricately tattooed, shape-shifting demigod, Maui.

Moana, which will be shown in theaters beginning in November, features the voices of Auli’i Cravalho as Moana and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson as Maui.

[Featured photo by Sandra Mu/Getty Images]