Disney classic 'Mary Poppins' reclassified for using South African racial slur
The family favourite has fallen foul of the British film censors for its use of 'discriminatory language'.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Disney trailer screenshot
Dick van Dyke's dodgy British accent aside, the Disney classic 'Mary Poppins' has been a family film favourite for years.
Now, however, the movie starring Julie Andrews had been reclassified, from U (universal viewing) to PG (parental guidance) after falling foul of British film censors.
According to the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC), the film, based on P. L. Travers's book series Mary Poppins, now 'exceeds our guidelines' for U films.
In the film, characters use the racial slur 'Hottentots' several times.
"While Mary Poppins has a historical context, the use of discriminatory language is not condemned, and ultimately exceeds our guidelines for acceptable language. We therefore classified the film PG for discriminatory language."
- British Board of Film Classification
The term 'Hottentots' was historically used by Europeans to refer to the Khoekhoe and the San and, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is now "generally considered both archaic and offensive".
The South African Human Rights Commission welcomes the reclassification but argues it does not go far enough.
"We want them to go further, because you can't put an age restriction on racism. Racism is racism."
- Chris Nissen, South African Human Rights Commission
"This word 'hottentot', no matter how we explain it, has got a brutality in it that caused genocide amongst the San and the Khoi in this country."
- Chris Nissen, South African Human Rights Commission
Although an offensive term, it is not obsolete in South Africa.
A mountain range in the Western Cape is still called the Hottentots Holland Mountains, the Hottentots-Holland High School is a prestigious Afrikaans- and English-speaking school in the Western Cape and, until recently, the Pachymetopon blochii was more commonly known as the Hottentot Fish.
"The school in Somerset West has been very very cooperative with us..."
- Chris Nissen, South African Human Rights Commission
"And the Hottentot Fish is now offically called Cape Bream."
- Chris Nissen, South African Human Rights Commission
The Disney musical fantasy film is set in London in 1910 and follows a magical nanny, played by Andrews, hired to look after the Banks children, Jane and Michael.
The film won five Oscars in 1965.
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