The iconic Disney classic has been branded racist by a professor for its infamous chimney sweep scene.
In a stark claim the 1964 classic starring Julie Andrews, has been branded racist by Oregon’s Linfield College professor Daniel Pollack-Pelzner as he claims its racist as the characters blackened up their faces.
According to The New York Times Pelzner, claims the scene which shows Mary Poppins dancing on rooftops with Dick Van Dyke’s character Bert is racist as they blacken their faces instead of wiping them clean.
Pelzner who had faced criticism from fans of the hit classic also claimed that not only the movie is racist but the books by PL Travers are racist, saying that in one instance the book has the line “Don’t touch me, you black heathen,”
which is said by a housemaid to a chimney sweep.
The professor also claimed that it was racist when Admiral Boom shouts orders to fire on the chimney sweeps by yelling: “We’re being attacked by Hottentots!”.
He added: “The 1964 film replays this racial panic in a farcical key.”
“When the dark figures of the chimney sweeps Step in Time on a roof and a naval buffoon, Admiral Boom shouts, we’re in on the joke, such as it is: These aren’t really black Africans; they’re grinning white dancers in blackface. It’s a parody of black menace; it’s even posted on a white nationalist website as evidence of the film’s racial hierarchy.”
However despite his comments Pelzner was criticised by fans of the movie who accessed him of making more of the iconic scene than it really is.
They also claimed that he was creating and spreading racial stereotypes that aren’t even there.