” She looks like me. “She has braids like me.” Videos of emotional little African-American girls with their eyes wide open marveling at the first images of the “new Ariel” have gone viral on social media in recent days.
Posted at 6:00 a.m.
African-American actress and singer Halle Bailey, who portrays the character in Disney’s new adaptation of The little Mermaid (scheduled for May 2023), herself tweeted that she shed a few tears when she saw the video of a little black girl who discovered with delight the trailer where she performs the song Part of Your World.
“We are offering the possibility to these little girls to dream, to think that they too can be princesses, be unique”, underlines the doctor in psychopedagogy and professor Marie-Claire Sancho.
She insists on the importance of offering young people models with whom they can identify, in cult films as much as in the media. “I remember the first little black girl in a Disney movie, The princess and the Frog ; afterwards, there were no more. »
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, THE PRESS
Marie-Claire Sancho, doctor in educational psychology and professor
If a black or Arab little girl is portrayed positively in the media and in movies, it will have a direct impact on her self-esteem and the image she has of her collective identity. So if we just show little blonde girls with blue eyes, there is no identification and the intrinsic motivation – “I want to become like that too” – is non-existent.
Marie-Claire Sancho, doctor in educational psychology and professor
A “capital” representativeness
Marketing professor at the University of Ottawa Myriam Brouard also believes that representativeness in the media and films is “crucial”. “You start creating your self-image at a very young age and the things you’re exposed to play a lot in how you develop. »
“The lack of representation means that people cannot imagine themselves in certain situations, in relation to employment, for example. When you see a film, you talk about fantasy, so it’s even more important to be able to project yourself into imaginary worlds,” says Myriam Brouard.
“Imagination is very important during the early childhood period. It is a period when the imagination, the creativity of children, will forge them, train them, crystallize their self-esteem and what they want to do, ”adds the DD Marie-Claire Sancho. Identifying with someone also motivates you to look up to them as a role model, she says. “It’s a form of visualization. Once you identify, it’s like saying, “I can do that too.” »
These little girls who recognize themselves in Ariel’s features also see their collective esteem strengthened, in her opinion, since their pride in the group to which they belong is increased.
Myriam Brouard adds that it is all the more essential to have different types of representation, especially in roles that are not auxiliary. “Often, we see a type of family, a type of child… It’s really important to be able to vary, to be able to represent reality – and the reality is that we have a great diversity in Quebec , in Canada, in the United States, and it should be put forward. »