A few years ago, I wrote a post about my very own Latina princess and had argued that Disney had a difficult task to represent a community as diverse as the planet on a single princess. As the anticipation grows for the introduction of Elena of Avalor this year, I want to talk about a multicultural princess: the one and only AbiCool.
Although it’s imperative to have diverse characters on TV and movies, I want to address the importance of nurturing our own multicultural princess at home. It is not only about ethnicity, but also about raising our girls to be strong, educated and knowledgeable about their heritage and how to navigate the multiple cultural settings they encounter growing up Latina in the United States.
I still think the way I did back then, we should highlight the fact that we are the product of different mixes, and even within the same family we have diverse origins and races. And as a Latina mom, I want to raise my multicultural princess to be much more than an ethnic beauty, I want her to be confident, independent, and smart while rooted in our traditions as a source of strength.
As for Elena of Avalor, many had said in the press that she would not be ‘really’ a Latina princess because it wasn’t specify as such. This is part of what the official statement from Disney said: “What excites us most is the chance to use distinctive animation and visual design to tell wonderful stories influenced by culture and traditions that are familiar to the worldwide population of Hispanic and Latino families and reflect the interests and aspirations of all children as told through a classic fairy tale.”
It continued to describe Elena as a 16 year-old bold, caring, funny and clever princess” who will be voiced by young a Latina actress: Dominican-born Aimee Carrero. In my opinion, this is a good start and effort to portrait more diverse characters in their offerings.
Why raise a multicultural princess?
Well, princesses are fun! And if you have a girly girl like myself, you know that they are a part of pretend-play and as a mom one cannot pass opportunities for teaching moments. The same way I buy my daughter a variety of dolls, I make sure to let her know she can be a princess as well.
While America continues to grow more diverse and multicultural, we must teach our children to be more tolerant, open-minded and appreciative of differences. That’s the great thing about raising a multicultural princess; you can nurture her best qualities, and let her know how beautiful she is, inside and out.
Just gorgeous! My daughter is half white/half Indian and she’s so drawn to princess stuff. I’ve avoided Disney so far and I’m always looking for more diverse examples of fancy ladies. 🙂