Um...Super Awkward Question...

[mmouse37]

Let's not rake anyone over the coals here....I will take a guess that the comment of it being a non-issue was meant to alleviate any fears that the OP had while onboard. It will not be an issue (unless you get some jerk but that can happen anywhere). I have been on 38 DCL cruises and have NEVER seen any issues with race. I have seen thousands of vacationers getting along and enjoying their time off. I have seen many interracial couples and many nationalities onboard all getting along.

OP, go and have a wonderful time and don't worry about being an interracial couple....worry more about how addicting DCL will be!!!!

MJ

 

[MickeyEarrings]

I have frankly never looked at the color of people's faces... I look at their smiles, their pretty princess dresses, their desserts (yum!)... but I've never really looked at the makeup of the passenger group. Maybe because I'm white?...

 

[hanscarlet]

OP I have been on three cruises and I've noticed there is a lot of diversity among passengers on the ship. While the majority are white, there is enough diversity in my opinion that wouldn't make you feel like you and your family "stick out"... also side note but DCL is very friendly to the gay community as well and I've noticed gay couples and their children on the ship as well so it's a very inclusive environment.... most people who follow Disney and are passionate about Disney know that they are a very liberal, family driven organization that tries to be inclusive to all family backgrounds where-ever possible. I am sorry you get ridiculous comments on your family. I do not believe you will get anything like that on the ship and I think you'll find you and your family will be very comfortable. It's not like a snobby rich white person boat for sure, it's totally chill and inclusive.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

being told we are a "cute couple" because we "match" .... argghhh.

My husband and I get this comment a lot because we are both short!

 

[kaseyC]

We are an AA family and have been cruising DCL since 2000. Never had any issues at all. My husband I have never been mistaken for staff. My daughters have never felt out of place. As a matter of fact, we have all made some great friends that we still see and travel with sometimes. The demographics are different on each sailing. I find the racial make up of DCL very similar to the community I live in. You will not feel out of place or treated differently. DCL is a fantastic cruise line. Your family will have a blast.

 

[Msmit002]

So, lets start here. I'm Caucasian. So is my family but we live in the Washington DC region which is, as you can imagine, very ethnically diverse. And, I'm a research scientist and that profession has a LOT of diversity (and Caucasian females are the minority.) So please understand that, for me, I don't really "see" someone's race/ethnicity when I speak/encounter them unless I see something that is clearly part of their culture (their garment, food they are eating, etc.) that catches my attention. It's not that I don't recognize other ethnicity and their differences, it's just that it doesn't make me single out non-white people. It's so accepted in my life (many people of many nationalities/race) that it doesn't make me pause. Does that make sense?

So I just called over to one of my colleagues - who is Pakistani and her husband is from Borneo and have sailed DCL a few times. I had her read your post. She said that, as far as passengers were concerned, she remembers that her 3-night cruise was a bit more ethnically diverse than the 11 night Southern Caribbean. Nevertheless, she said that she and her family never felt slighted in any way while on board and can't wait until they can go on another cruise. She said she really loved meeting all of the different CMs and talking about their countries and that her tablemates on their last cruise (the 11 nighter) were quite nice and very interested to learn a little about where they were from and what it was like in their home countries.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

[QUOTE="Club Disney Chandler, post: 57427438, member: 478299]

You are making an issue of a non-issue, plain and simple.

It may be a non-issue for you, but it's a concern for her. Do you live her life?

OP, my first DCL is this December so I can't help alleviate your concerns, but if you read the thread regarding table mates on here, I think you will see that there is a big mixture of cultures on these ships.[/QUOTE]
I'm not saying anything about her life, I'm saying it's not an issue on the ships. And for what it's worth I'm in a bi-racial marriage with kids as well.

 

[Club Disney Chandler]

It is absolutely not within your right to tell a POC this is a non-issue.

********

OP. While I do think the majority of cruises are white I sincerely hope you won't have any issues. There were people from several countries and POC on my cruise last April. If you have any trouble at all contact the nearest CM asap. They will handle it quickly and discreetly. I made friends with several CMs day one and they made everything better all week long. Every time I turned around they were there and making sure my girls and I were comfortable. :hugs: Have a wonderful happy cruise.

Well it is within my rights because she posed a question on a public forum and I answered based on my experience, and yes I'm in a bi-racial marriage with bi-racial kids.

Do you really think if there was a problem with race relations on a Disney ship it wouldn't be posted here somewhere?

 

[sunshine1259]

Hello, OP. I am a Black woman married to a White man and although, we don't have any children, we have been on 16 and 14 Disney cruises respectively. My niece, who is half Black and half Hispanic, has sailed with us several times as well. And in all of those Disney cruises, not once have I felt uncomfortable or been mistaken as one of the CM. Although, there was the cruise where we all (a whole diverse group of us (13)) had Disney name tags on. While some of passengers questioned us about whether we were CM or not, most realized that we just had on Disney name tags and were not actually CM.

I really need to get better at taking and then posting pictures. I say, go and enjoy your cruise!!! You will have a blast.

 

[CamColt]

I will agree with the majority here that I would not expect this to be an issue while on board. As noted above you can find a jerk or 2 anywhere, but in general I think most people wouldn't think twice about it. I can say I've seen many races/nationalities on our cruises, even spent some time enjoying their company, and never gave anyone who was different from my family a second look. Most people are too busy having fun and enjoying their family time to care about anyone else.

 

[ladyofthetramp]

The best part of any cruise, to me, is all the different people I meet, including the CM's-where they are from etc. My favorite part of cruising.

 

[hanscarlet]

Just saw this article on FB, check out the comments section, made me think of this post today

https://www.facebook.com/lovewhatreallymatters/posts/1479823985373328

 

[Recie]

We are an AA family getting ready for our 6th cruise. We have not had any issues with crewmembers ior passengers. I think everyone is too busy doing their own thing to notice anybody else (or care).
There are trip reports done by POC, just not as many. Try to have fun and not worry about what others think.

 

[1Winston]

I wish I could go be you some stats but after my 4 DCL cruises I couldn't tell you the number of people of color because I don't notice that.

Unless your husband is wearing a name tag he won't get mistaken for a CM.

You are making an issue of a non-issue, plain and simple.

Says the white person who doesn't understand. I am sure that people like you and I would not notice colour but there are unbelievably those that do as this couple have already experienced. Please don't tell someone they are making an issue out of a non issue when you haven't walked a mile in their shoes. Sorry.

 

[anricat]

CMs do not get downtime in passenger areas.

Not to completely derail the conversation, but this isn't true. I've encountered CMs (out of uniform without name tags on) in multiple public areas. One was chilling one day at CC, I've interacted with one having coffee in Cove and I saw several officers having brunch one day in Palo with a bunch of other people in plain clothes some of whom also appeared to be CMs.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Says the white person who doesn't understand. I am sure that people like you and I would not notice colour but there are unbelievably those that do as this couple have already experienced. Please don't tell someone they are making an issue out of a non issue when you haven't walked a mile in their shoes. Sorry.

Did you read that poster's followup? Seems the poster has "walked a mile in their shoes".

Well it is within my rights because she posed a question on a public forum and I answered based on my experience, and yes I'm in a bi-racial marriage with bi-racial kids.

Do you really think if there was a problem with race relations on a Disney ship it wouldn't be posted here somewhere?

 

[CamColt]

Hey gang, let's keep this thread on topic, of giving information to the OP. There is no need to judge their concerns or to address anyone who does. I'd like to keep this thread open as I can see it can be very helpful and we don't see this topic come up often, however if it gets derailed we will need to close it.
Thanks for your cooperation!

 

[RedSox68]

OP, have you ever been to any of the Disney parks? The parks are full of diverse crowds.

Every cruise is different and composed of different types of cruisers from all types of backgrounds. Relax, you will have something in common with several thousand others on board: everybody is on vacation and looking to have an enjoyable experience.

I was going to say that it depends on the people cruising as every cruise is different. I could not even imagine that any Disney CM would have any reaction whether verbally or physically to you or your family as they are from around the world and are so lovely and accommodating. Can't speak for passengers, unfortunately -- but would certainly hope that in this day and age they are above that and just enjoying their cruise and not judging.

I hope you have a wonderful time and don't let this make you nervous or paranoid. As far as photos in Shutters, we have seen every type of family dynamic imagineable and never gave it a second thought. The only pictures I have ever judged were the ones where everyone in the picture looked miserable and no one was smiling LOL

 

[jrabbit]

sometimes I get mistaken for the Great White Whale while swimming (that's how white I am) .... and I come from a predominately Lilly White state. So I do not know what you encounter on a daily basis, nor what you will encounter on your cruise but we have been on 15+ DCL cruises and have made friends with many non white guests.

People from:
Mexico
Puerto Rico
Japan
South American
Africa
Middle East

But yes, there will be a LOT of white people on board, and NO I don't think that your hubby will be mistaken for a crew member.

 

[jrabbit]

...As far as photos in Shutters, we have seen every type of family dynamic imagineable and never gave it a second thought. The only pictures I have ever judged were the ones where everyone in the picture looked miserable and no one was smiling LOL

I believe that NONE of the DCL ships currently have everyones photos up on the big boards - its all digital on screens and you can only get to the pic's of the stateroom(s) you belong to.