Now, we all know that there’s some controversy surrounding the upcoming live action version of The Little Mermaid, where African American actress Halle Bailey, was selected to play the titular character instead of a Caucasian female with red hair, like in the classic cartoon.
Though, thankfully, many are not giving the controversy any energy by ignoring the critics. Another amazing aspect of all of this are the various videos of African American children reacting to seeing a black mermaid, with many of them feeling ecstatic from seeing themselves represented on screen.
Here’s a compilation video of these kids reacting to the trailer:
@celebsources thanks @Disney @halle I would have loved to have seen this when I was little !!!! #disney #representationmatters #sad #moving #emotional #moving #littlemermaid #ariel #hallebailey #movie #kids #blackpeople #kid #cute #reaction #blackgirl
Wholesome, right?
Of course, someone just had to try and tear them down. TikTok user, @kyahnextdoor, showcased a now-deleted video from someone who is either Malaysian or Indonesian, where the man can be seen recreating the reaction video with his face covered in a black beauty mask.
With the black beauty mask on, the man basically mocked the small children who felt excited to see someone who looked like them playing The Little Mermaid.
“Mummy, she looks like me,” the man said in the video.
Is this really necessary?
Many didn’t take too well to the man’s video, considering he’s using blackface to mock small children for being happy.
You can check out the disgusting and hurtful video here:
They hate us so much. This video was taken down but before it was, he commented saying he was let going to take it down. Y’all do anything for a like or status. Do as you please but keep us tf out of it. Joss Marchell #blackface #TheLittleMermaid pic.twitter.com/eLA5fhj0kr
— ShelbyNicole (COMMISSIONS OPEN) (@ShelbyNCustoms) September 19, 2022
Why can’t we just be happy for others?
Also read: Malay Man Sings Tamil Song So Gorgeously, He Knocked Everyone’s Socks Off!