By: Sara Smith Racial Stereotypes have permeated children’s films since the genre’s beginning, and still persist in modern cinema. They establish and perpetuate the negative social perceptions of races and gender. They offer no opportunity for change. Hispanics Tito: Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ignacio Alonso Julio Federico De Tito. Georgette: Get away from me, you little bug-eyed creep. “We are Siamese if you please We are Siamese if you don't please… When we finding baby there are milk nearby If we look in baby buggy there could be Plenty milk for you and also some for me.” -Si and Am from Lady and the Tramp “Shanghai, Hong Kong, Egg Fu Yung, fortune cookie always wrong!” – Shun Gon from The Aristocats The Black Comic Relief Donkey from Shrek The Italian-American Mobster Lenny, son of Don Lino, seen here in his dolphin disguise. “Funny, ain't it? I brought my sons into the world, full of love and care. And then you took them out. Do you know who I am? DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM? I'm the Don, the boss of the Great White Sharks! “ - Don Lino from Shark Tale Femme Fatale The Traditional Role Lola from Shark Tale Lady from Lady and the Tramp Duchess from The Aristocats Produced by Dream works, Shark Tale is a prime example of both negative racial stereotypes and oppressive gender roles. The Aristocats. Dir. Wolfgang Reitherman. Perf. Phil Harris and Eve Gabor. Walt Disney Productions, 1970. DVD. Benshoff, Harry M., and Sean Griffin. America On Film. Malden, MA: Black Well, 2006. Print. Bogle, Donald. Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks. New York, NY: Continuum, 1991. Print. Lady and the Tramp. Dir. Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hamilton Luske. Perf. Barbara Luddy, Larry Roberts and Peggy Lee. Walt Disney Productions, 1955. DVD. Mulvey, Laura. "Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema." Feminist Film Theory: A Reader. Ed. Sue Thornham. New York, NY: New York UP, 2006. 58-69. Print. "New Hampshire." U.S. Census Bureau. Web. <http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/33000.html>. Oliver and Company. Dir. George Scribner. Perf. Joseph Lawrence and Billy Joel. Walt Disney Productions, 1988. DVD. Shark Tale. Dir. Bibo Bergeron, Vicky Jenson, and Rob Letterman. Perf. Will Smith, Robert De Niro and Renée Zellweger. DreamWorks Animation, 2004. DVD. "Shark Tale Slammed." Sydney Morning Herald - Business & World News Australia | Smh.com.au. Web. 24 Apr. 2011. <http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/15/1095221648576.htm l>. Shrek. Dir. Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson. Perf. Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz. Dreamworks Pictures, 2001. DVD. Vitullo, Juliann. "Screening the Italian-American Male." Masculinity. By Aaron Baker and Peter Lehman. New York, NY: Routledge, 2001. 213-25. Print. http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/33000.html http://yanny0808.blogspot.com/2010/12/movie-shark-tale.html http://www.aveleyman.com/ActorCredit.aspx?ActorID=11094 http://www.obsessedwithsports.com/2010/06/11/glen-davis-and- nate-robinson-are-shrek-and-donkey-best-friends/ http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/File:Siamese.jpg http://thecheerfulearfull.blogspot.com/2009/09/ladies-tramps- and-super-fierce-secret.html http://i-love-disney.com/new_July.php http://mainancewek.blogspot.com/2009/03/disney-aristocats- clipart.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/15/1095221648576.html http://movies.ign.com/articles/552/552650p1.html .