"Encanto" Doesn't Need Assigned Sexual Identities - JackCentral

What broke the camel’s back? Easy.

Luisa Madrigal knows it’s the pressure of expectations.

Disney’s latest animated release, “Encanto,” focuses on interpersonal dynamics concerning family, child displacement and Hispanic cultural pressures — heavy but essential recognition for the community. 

The film doesn’t need people projecting sexual orientations onto characters — it sets an ignorant precedent that applying labels to those who don’t “meet” society’s expectations is acceptable. 

Simply because Isabella doesn’t want an arranged marriage to a man doesn’t make her a lesbian, nor does Luisa’s body type constrain her to masculine gender roles. 

Camilo isn’t nonbinary because he can turn into different people of different genders. These assumptions and classifications stereotype sexual and gender identities which the characters do not identify as, at the same time erasing their personality and culture. 

In a Disney Wiki fandom post for “Encanto,” user Carebearheart said, “[Luisa] being a buff, hilarious woman character ... I would not [be] surprised if Luisa is a butch lesbian or bisexual.”  

Some may be wondering why this matters. They may think fictional characters impact nobody. 

To me, phrases like this are dangerous; they erase members of the LGBTQIA+ community who exist in real life. 

To assume all butch lesbians are buff women, or marginalized people can choose who they are, is unacceptable. No amount of rephrasing makes these generalizations better. 

As a Hispanic lesbian, I understand why people want characters who are members of the LGBTQIA+ community — I want that too. However, the depiction of Colombian culture in  “Encanto” is also significant.  

Let’s demand better representation; we shouldn’t settle and change the depictions of the limited People of Color that already exist in Disney films. While the push for intersectionality in Disney characters is monumental, there are too many harmful assumptions surrounding the cultural shift.

Just because certain media perceptions of People of Color or LGBTQIA+ people might seem accurate doesn’t mean reinforcing those expectations has no damage. 

People will go to extreme lengths to bring sexuality into the picture for fictional characters, and believe that they are righteous in doing so. Viewers of “Encanto” should celebrate diverse characters’ stories without generalization and pressure for more labels.