'Gave her the D': Suggestive shirts worn by Disney theme park guests have some asking for stricter dress codes
Hold onto your mouse ears.
Two suggestive Disney-themed T-shirts are going viral after a California theme park enthusiast tweeted a photo of an unidentified couple wearing the shirts on a recent visit to Disneyland Park. Sam Carter says a friend sent him the photo after a recent discussion about seeing an increasing number of suggestive and adult-themed shirts showing up inside Disney parks.
The his-and-hers tees mix a love of Disney with sexual innuendo, reading, "I wanted the D," and, "I gave her the D," respectively, in classic Disney font with a castle graphic.
"We've seen crude shirts like this for a while now," Carter, an Orange County, Calif.-based designer who frequents Disney parks on both coasts, tells Yahoo Life, "first at Epcot with somewhat tame shirts about getting wasted and drinking around the World Showcase, but most recently this pun of 'wanting the D.'" He adds, "I think it's more about shock value for someone to wear a suggestive phrase in a family park."
Many parkgoers were shocked by Carter's photo, taking to the comments to call for Disney Parks to stop allowing T-shirts with adult-themed language inside their gates and questioning how parents should explain these types of phrases when passing by them with children in the parks.
"Wouldn't want to have to explain what the shirt means to a kid," wrote one Twitter user.
"Kind of tacky to bring to a theme park," said another.
Others chimed in to say they weren't sure what the big deal was.
"It's not really offensive as much as it is unfunny," read one tweet.
Another reasoned, "It's not obscene...it's a lot milder than some of the innuendo in Disney cartoons."
Carter says he was surprised at the variety of opinions that showed up beneath his tweet.
"I realize it's [some people's] right to get fired up about it if they want," says Carter. "It's also my right to tweet my opinion. I covered the people's faces because it felt like the right thing to do since it wasn't about them personally — clown emojis seemed appropriate."
But are the shirts a violation of Disney Parks dress codes?
Both Disneyland and Walt Disney World list "clothing with objectionable material, including obscene language or graphics" as inappropriate attire for their parks. Yahoo Life contacted Disneyland Resort, where Carter's photo was taken, for clarification on whether the shirts in question qualify as a dress code violation, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Aliette Silva and her family are annual pass holders at Walt Disney World Resort and visit Disney parks several times each month. Silva, whose children are 4 and 7, tells Yahoo Life she regularly sees park guests wearing unofficial Disney shirts like the ones Carter tweeted about.
"I do love seeing the shirts people come up with — it's a fun part of the Disney experience," says Silva. "But shirts about 'getting the D?' I see them everywhere. Like, we get the joke. They're overdone at this point."
Silva says her own children aren't yet old enough to ask questions about the shirts, which are often homemade made using vinyl cutting machines or purchased from online sellers. Still, once Silva's kids do start asking questions about shirts that sing the praises of drinking too much alcohol at Epcot or other topics that would make Mickey Mouse blush, she says she'll try her best to answer in a way that fits their maturity level.
"Every parent knows their child best and knows how to answer any questions they may have," says the Orlando, Fla. mom. "Most importantly, I'd say try not to think about the shirts and remember to have fun — you're at Disney."
Catherine Pearlman, founder of the Family Coach, LLC, says Silva's plan perfectly emcompasses the two options parents have when they encounter suggestive material while out in public with their kids.
"The first option is to say nothing," Pearlman says. "If the child doesn't get it and isn't asking, just ignore it. There is no rule you have to discuss every bit of information that is presented to your child."
"However," she adds, "if the child appears to be interested in the shirt then I would address it briefly and in an age-appropriate way. In the case of these sexualized Disney shirts, I would just say, 'These are adults making adult jokes.'"
Pearlman cautions that kids take social cues from their parents, so it's important not to act... Goofy when passing by shirts with questionable content.
"If you and your partner are guffawing or showing a shocked expression," she cautions, "your child will be more interested and may even repeat what was seen. It's best just to act like it's nothing important and move on."
Watch: How to get the most from your trip to Disney World