For once, Johnny Depp has nothing to do with the buzz surrounding the sequel to ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.’

The movie, ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest’ will begin filming in March in Dominica, a small Caribbean island. Disney has arranged to hire hundreds of Dominicans as extras for the film, and many have already lined up for the roles, eager for the opportunity-specifically, the additional salary. Disney is happy to hire them and the Dominicans are happy for the money.

But the plot thickens. Disney executives admitted that the script contains a ‘strong element of cannibalism,’ said Carib Chief Charles Williams of Dominica, after he met with them. In the film, the Dominicans will be playing the part of cannibals. Williams has objected to the arrangement, arguing that America and Europe have mistakenly viewed Caribs as ‘savages and cannibals’ since the 1400s because of battles with Europeans, and if Dominicans play the parts of cannibals in this movie, the rest of the world will continue to portray Caribs as such, according to the United Kingdom’s The Guardian.

‘Our ancestors stood up against early European conquerors and because they stood up … we were labeled savages and cannibals up to today. This cannot be perpetuated in the movies,’ Williams said.

The Dominican government and some Dominicans, however, claim that the income from the roles will help the economy, i.e., help the people.

Thus the main conflict arises. In the days after the Dominicans perform their work acting as cannibals in the film, yes, they will have some extra income to spend. No one dislikes extra money, and many Dominicans could desperately benefit from that extra money, no doubt.

But long after they spend that money, their faces-as cannibals- will appear in the American film, watched by millions of people who know nothing about Dominican culture, over and over, for years to come. Is that a legacy they want to leave, after trying for so long to erase it? They are selling their dignity, in return for a few dollars.

In the 18th century, the time in which the film is set, the Carib people acted as fierce warriors and defenders of their land when the Europeans arrived. In no way were they cannibals, or savages.

If Disney, which has a history of misrepresenting non-white cultures, changes the script of the film to represent the people of the island accurately, the Dominicans can reap the short term benefits of the extras’ salary without suffering the long term consequences. Disney will be take one step toward being a socially responsible, culture creating machine.

That’s an ending everyone can appreciate.

JEAN STEVENS IS A JUNIOR MAGAZINE JOURNALISM, POLITICAL SCIENCE AND WOMEN’S STUDIES MAJOR. E-MAIL HER AT JMSTEV03@SYR.EDU.

Published on February 28, 2005 at 12:00 pm