{"id":2633252,"date":"2026-07-21T17:03:01","date_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:03:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/brandon-gill-presses-smithsonian-official-is-mickey-mouse-racist\/"},"modified":"2026-07-21T17:08:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T21:08:33","slug":"brandon-gill-presses-smithsonian-official-is-mickey-mouse-racist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/brandon-gill-presses-smithsonian-official-is-mickey-mouse-racist\/","title":{"rendered":"Brandon Gill presses Smithsonian official: \u2018Is Mickey Mouse racist?\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fbrandon-gill-presses-smithsonian-official-is-mickey-mouse-racist%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2633252&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) challenged the Smithsonian\u2019s National Museum of American History over an exhibit linking Mickey Mouse\u2019s origins to blackface minstrelsy,questioning whether the character is racist. The museum&#8217;s director, Anthea Hartig, acknowledged that Mickey Mouse&#8217;s early depiction has roots in minstrel traditions but emphasized her responsibility to present accurate facts rather than judge what is problematic. The dispute centered on a label for the 1928 cartoon &#8220;steamboat Willie&#8221; that described Mickey&#8217;s features as remnants of minstrel traditions. Gill also questioned statements about &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/san-francisco-school-district-drops-one-acronym-for-another-while-claiming-theyre-a-symptom-of-white-supremacy-culture\/\" title=\"San Francisco School District Drops One Acronym For Another While Claiming They\u2019re A ...Symptom Of ... Culture\u2019\">white supremacy culture<\/a>&#8221; and internal Smithsonian materials discussing ideological shifts, including a &#8220;Mass Action Toolkit&#8221; that critiques Western ideals of race, class, and gender, suggesting it promotes problematic views. Republicans criticized the Smithsonian for moving away from its original purpose, accusing it of adopting a woke ideology that emphasizes race, gender, immigration, and inequality, and called for reform due to perceived politicization of its exhibits and materials. The Smithsonian maintains it strives for objectivity and denies promoting any ideology.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rep.<a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/author\/rep-brandon-gill\/\" type=\"mediapress_author\" id=\"12819\"> Brandon Gill <\/a>(R-TX) challenged the director of the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/smithsonian-institution\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"3107\">Smithsonian\u2019s<\/a> National Museum of American History on Tuesday over an exhibit linking Mickey Mouse\u2019s origins to blackface minstrelsy, accusing the museum of injecting politics into <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/american-history\/\" type=\"post_tag\" id=\"2462\">American history<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gill asked museum director Anthea Hartig whether Mickey Mouse was racist, citing an exhibit that describes the character as containing \u201cvestiges of longstanding traditions of blackface minstrelsy\u201d during the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency\u2019s hearing on the Smithsonian. The hearing follows a <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Smithsonian-Report-Saving-Americas-Story.pdf\">White House report<\/a> that argued the Smithsonian Institution had abandoned objective scholarship in favor of progressive activism.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4657414\/brandon-gill-smithsonian-mickey-mouse-racist\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Brandon Gill presses Smithsonian official over declaring imagery racist: \u2018Is Mickey Mouse racist?\u2019<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4656967\/funding-patch-lindsey-graham-david-scott-death-gratuity-payments\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>GOP spending bill includes $174,000 death payout for families of Lindsey Graham and David Scott<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/house\/4656479\/house-republicans-save-america-act-budget-bill\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>House Republicans consider bundling \u2018real mandatory\u2019 SAVE America Act policy into budget bill<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMickey Mouse is not racist,\u201d Hartig replied, but said historians have documented that the character\u2019s early origins are rooted in minstrel traditions. Pressed by Gill, she said it was her responsibility to present \u201cwhat\u2019s accurate,\u201d not determine what is \u201cproblematic.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The dispute centers on the wall label over the 1928 Steamboat Willie cartoon, which reads:<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMickey Mouse debuted as the deckhand \u2018Steamboat Willie\u2019 in 1928, amidst a rising anxiety felt by many that modern living and city life were eroding family and community ties and loosening moral codes \u2026 But the new character\u2019s outsized facial features, white gloves, and trickster temperament were vestiges of longstanding traditions of blackface minstrelsy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gill also questioned Hartig about internal Smithsonian materials discussing \u201cwhite supremacy culture\u201d and the museum\u2019s sale of \u201cLatina Power\u201d merchandise, arguing the examples reflect a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/squad-leftist-rashida-tlaib-turns-against-biden-for-dem-primary-now-he-has-a-choice-to-make\/\" title=\"Squad&#039; member Rashida Tlaib opposes Biden in Dem primary - Decision time for him\">broader ideological shift<\/a> at the federally funded institution. Hartig maintained the Smithsonian strives to be objective and does not promote any political ideology.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe strive to be objective and nonpartisan,\u201d Hartig said, while disputing Gill\u2019s characterization of the document and maintaining that the Smithsonian \u201cdid not develop\u201d the toolkit and is \u201cnot promoting any ideology.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gill also repeatedly questioned museum director Anthea Hartig about a \u201cMass Action Toolkit\u201d circulated within the Smithsonian, asking whether it was appropriate for the museum to promote materials that characterize objectivity as part of \u201cwhite supremacy culture.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to the report, the \u201cMass Action Toolkit,\u201d was an effort to \u201ctruly transform the museum space\u201d that \u201cprivileges dominant Western ideals of race, class, and gender\u201d and is linked \u201cwith white supremacy, hetero-patriarchy, abuse of labor, colonization, imperialist theft of art and artifacts, destruction or absencing of alternative ways of interpreting or representing art and artifacts, structural racism and other oppressions.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\" style=\"text-transform:uppercase\"><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/editorials\/4638754\/the-smithsonian-failed-mission-working-against-celebration-brave-founding-era\/\" type=\"link\" id=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/opinion\/editorials\/4638754\/the-smithsonian-failed-mission-working-against-celebration-brave-founding-era\/\">The Smithsonian has failed in its mission and must be reformed<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Republicans, led by Subcommittee Chairman Tim Burchett (R-TN), pointed to Hartig\u2019s past statements describing history as \u201ca prime tool of social justice\u201d and criticized the museum\u2019s emphasis on race, gender, immigration, and economic inequality.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe Museum has strayed from the original purpose for which it exists and receives federal taxpayer support,\u201d Burchett <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/oversight.house.gov\/release\/burchett-opens-hearing-on-extreme-political-activism-at-the-smithsonians-national-museum-of-american-history\/\">said<\/a> in his opening statement. \u201cIt\u2019s become infected by a woke ideology that\u2019s seeped into its public displays, educational materials, and planning documents.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rep. Gill questions Smithsonian over Mickey Mouse exhibit linking to minstrelsy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4195,"featured_media":2633253,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-collage-hr3yjvzmn-1784662194597-e1784664982269.jpg?1784650721&amp;w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[82992,82993,43729,17565],"class_list":["post-2633252","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-disney-controversy","tag-mickey-mouse","tag-racial-issues","tag-smithsonian"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-collage-hr3yjvzmn-1784662194597-e1784664982269.jpg?1784650721&amp;w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633252","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4195"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2633252"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633252\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2633256,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2633252\/revisions\/2633256"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2633253"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2633252"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2633252"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2633252"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}