I’m an only child. Growing up, it always affected me looking around and seeing everyone with siblings but me. Then the iconic Disney movie Cheetah Girls came out, and almost my whole life changed.
“We’re Cheetah Girls, Cheetah Sisters!” They repeated over and over. Suddenly, I didn’t feel so alone anymore. The Cheetah Girls always made me feel comfortable. They always gave off a feel of togetherness and a sense of belonging. They loved each other so much and I felt loved by them too; I knew if they met me they would love me because they always accepted different and never wanted anyone to feel alone.
The Cheetah Girls was originally a movie starring Raven Symoné (Galleria) – who leaves for the last movie –, Adrienne Bailon (Chanel), Keily Williams (Aqua) and Sabrina Bryan (Dorinda). The girls are from Manhattan and the movies follow their’ journey to becoming successful musicians.
Galleria and Aqua are black, Chanel is a Latina and Dorinda is mixed race (a Latina and white). No white leads for the first time, finally! I didn’t have to hate my skin shade or eye colour anymore. The songs Cheetah Sisters and One World reinforce that we all need to love and accept each other and come together to achieve something great. The Cheetah Girls broke many race barriers in Hollywood and especially in children-targeted cinema.
Also, in the third movie, The Cheetah Girls: One World, the girls travel to India and break many stereotypes about the country. It turns out India has its own diverse fashion, music and dances. It turns out Indians have their own original way of transport and their streets while in some cases old they are still rich with culture. Also, Hollywood isn’t the only movie industry, there’s Bollywood too! This was eye-opening to me as a young girl whom was not yet exposed to the rest of the world and didn’t know any better than to believe stereotypes. It was one of the first movies that made me not want to believe everything that is being fed to me through family, friends, school and the media.
And even better, these girls were not the usual model-sized girls you see on Disney. Most of them were curvy and they owned it. To a back then chubby Arab child, this meant the world to me. That I don’t have to be textbook beautiful or white or thin to achieve my dreams, which are also becoming a musician! They could sing wonderfully and dance flawlessly (Dig a Little Deeper, anyone? Dance Me If You Can?), and they didn’t let any insecurity get to them while doing what the love which is something I struggle with to this day.
In addition, these girls came from different classes. The producers didn’t gloss over this fact either. You could see Dorinda’s struggle with living in a foster home with many other siblings and barely able to afford a lot of things Chanel, for example, couldn’t. Even Aqua wished on a wishing start to go to Spain with Chanel, showing the weak side in all of us that wants more despite our incapability of having it.
Finally, while there was a couple of romantic aspects to the movies, it was not the main one. This movie featured strong girls making it globally with their relatable music without being damsels in distresses, unlike many other Disney movies. Even if they had love interests, these girls didn’t need them which was what mattered to me as a young girl too. Growing up, all the Disney movies had romance, and I just didn’t know how a 7 year old girl should relate to a princess dating then marrying Prince Charming. Am I doing something wrong or are they? Then came the Cheetah Girls in my life and I knew it wasn’t the case. I knew that it’s okay to rely on my friends and my talent and build my own strength to move on forward.
This franchise, despite having many magical Disney moments, like Galleria’s dog Toto magically jumping out of the hole when they sang Cheetah Sisters, it is still a very human one. It explores an array of themes such as race, class, friendship, talent that many younger and older watchers alike can relate to. It has a great longevity with the catchy soundtrack and heart-warming storylines. I am grateful that my young self got to grow up watching these movies and I will make sure all the young ones to come in my life will get this chance too.
**This is part of our series on Disney original movies and their links to social justice. Catch the marathon this weekend on Disney.
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