(Lady and the Tramp, Oliver and Company, The Lion King), nefarious
Asians (Lady and Tramp, Mulan, The Aristocats), smart-mouthed, lazy,
disrespectful African Americans (Dumbo, The Lion King, Song of the
South, The Princess and the Frog, The Little Mermaid), and savage Native
Americans (Peter Pan, Pocahontas).
Table 7.5 is an attempt to draw together all characters from the
animated films who fulfill one or more of the following categories:
The voice actor is African American.
The voice actor was most likely cast on the basis of voice
recognition, regardless of race.
The animated character is Black either in actuality or
symbolically.
The animated character speaks English with some degree of
AAVE inflection or other salient markers (that is, the character’s
English would be heard as African American in origin).Table 7.5 African American animated characters