By Julianne McShane -
NBC News
Walt Disney World has closed its famous Splash Mountain water attraction, located in the Magic Kingdom, after years of criticism for its racist roots.
This decision has not satisfied everyone.
It closed on Sunday, and by Tuesday the #goodbyesplashmountain hashtag on the TikTok network had attracted 1.6 million views.
The somber tribute videos of the attraction to the song
Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah
- some of which showed the last moments of visitors riding their log boats over its 45-degree-drop waterfall - had thousands I like it
“I will miss you forever.
Goodbye Splash Mountain," read a video that had more than 1,300 likes Tuesday afternoon.
Another showed a wait of more than two hours on the last day.
Disney devotees - some are known as
Disney adults
- tried to capitalize on the attraction's closure by putting up for sale on eBay some bottles, jugs and plastic bags filled with what they claimed to be "Splash Mountain water."
Sellers claimed to have stolen the liquid during the last days of operation.
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The packages reached dozens of bids, with some buyers offering to pay more than $50.
The closure of this 30-year-old attraction follows years of calls for changes because it featured characters from the 1946 Disney film
Song of the South
, which featured racist stereotypes.
Princess Diana riding Splash Mountain at the Magic Kingdom in 1993. Martin Keene / PA Images via Getty Images file
The film, set on a plantation, features an elderly black man known as Uncle Remus who tells traditional African-American tales to white children cared for by black servants.
Walter White, former secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said the film "helps perpetuate a dangerously glorified image of slavery."
In March 2020, Disney Chairman Bob Iger confirmed that the film would not appear on the Disney+ streaming service, saying it is "not appropriate in today's world," Deadline reported.
Disney announced in June that Splash Mountain would be "reinterpreted" as Tiana's Bayou Adventure, based on Disney's first black princess, who appears in
The Princess and the Frog
(2009).
Tiana's Bayou Adventure will open at the Magic Kingdom and Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California in 2024.
“The new concept is inclusive — one that all of our guests can connect with and be inspired by, and speaks to the diversity of the millions of people who visit our parks each year,” Disney said in 2020 when it announced the new feature.
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Tokyo Disneyland's website does not indicate if or when its Splash Mountain attraction will close.
A Walt Disney World representative did not respond to questions Tuesday.
A Change.org petition created three years ago decrying Splash Mountain's racist images and demanding its replacement with a ride dedicated to
The Princess and the Frog
garnered more than 21,000 signatures.
"Although the attraction is considered a beloved classic, its story and plot are infused with highly problematic and stereotypical racist tropes from the 1946 film
Song of the South
," the petition reads.
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A counter petition, “To Save Splash Mountain,” has garnered more than 99,000 signatures.
“Splash Mountain has never included depictions of slaves or racist elements, and is based solely on historical African folktales that families of all ethnicities have enjoyed for nearly a century,” the petition says.
“It's absurd to pander to a small group of 'Disney haters' who don't understand history and change the subject of such a nostalgic attraction,” she added.
Dion Cini holds a Trump 2020 banner at Walt Disney World.Courtesy Dion Cini
Splash Mountain is no stranger to controversy: In 2018, it made headlines when Walt Disney World banned a man who rode it while holding a "Trump 2020" sign.