Let’s talk about Disney’s Zootopia.

You’re aware of the sociopolitical commentary in it. You’d have to be deaf to have not noticed it. We’re not going to talk about that aspect of the movie, though. Instead, we’re going to focus on something far more sinister.

We’re going to talk about the way one person’s plot can split an entire society.

Naturally, there will be spoilers in this post.

A Quick Summary

It all begins with a bunch of missing animals. The heroine, a new police officer named Judy Hopps, wants to help, and with the help of the sheepish (pun intended) assistant mayor Dawn Bellwether, she’s allowed 48 hours to investigate. As Hopps and her sidekick Nick Wilde pursue the case, they find that the missing animals are being kept illegally in a remote compound. They also learn the following:

• The animals are all predators
• They have gone “savage”
• They were captured through the machinations of the aptly-named Mayor Leodore Lionheart

The Mayor is found out and arrested, and Assistant Mayor Bellwether takes over. Hooray, the little bunny heroine saved the day!

The Plot Thickens

Except that there’s a lot more going on.

Since the “savage” animals were all predators, there comes to be a great deal of mistrust between predators and prey. The worst part is it’s believable. Big, loud, aggressive carnivores going savage? And they have evidence? And the predator mayor was covering it up to save face? What a scandal! We should banish them all!

It turns out that it was a plot all along. Using a serum (which Judy Hopps discovers is made from flowers found around her family farm), someone has been deliberately targeting predators and making them go “savage” in an effort to eject them from Zootopia’s society.

The shocking reveal is that the meek and underappreciated Dawn Bellwether is the mastermind behind the entire thing. The very character who you assumed the whole time was being oppressed turns out to be the person orchestrating the city’s conflict.

Fortunately, she gets found out and arrested, and everyone we care about lives happily ever after (except maybe Dash the DMV sloth, who gets pulled over for speeding).

The Real Victims

So why does any of this matter? Let’s start by profiling our villain, Assistant Mayor Bellwether:

• She’s small and meek
• She’s in a role where she’s overshadowed by a predator
• She feels underappreciated for all the work she does

We look at her situation and at Leodore’s scandalous imprisonment of “savage” animals, and we see someone who is clearly the victim here. We’d believe her if she said she felt like she was being threatened or oppressed. She wouldn’t even really need any evidence.

Yet here she is, trying to convict an entire section of society for something only a handful of their members have done. Some people have compared this to the oppression of minority races, but let’s bear in mind that the lion in the story is in charge of everything. He’s not representing a race. He’s just a big personality in a position of power.

He did do something wrong, but he did it (partly) to prevent widespread panic in the city. Of course, he was also trying to save face because it wouldn’t reflect well on him to have a bunch of predators going berserk and maiming citizens. So he’s not really innocent.

However, he is a victim. The situation orchestrated by Bellwether provoked enough outrage against him to permanently taint his good (well, decent) name. All because someone cried wolf.

And let’s note again that that “someone” was a sheep whom we’d assume was victimized by the lion.

And let’s add the fact that she did, in fact, have some evidence to support her claim, manufactured as it was.

The Takeaway

If this is starting to look like some of the issues we’ve been seeing in the news lately, great. It should. I’m doing my best to rub your noses in it. I don’t feel I need to name names for you to know what I’m talking about.

Just because someone seems like a victim doesn’t mean they actually are.

Of course, just because someone is accused with faulty evidence doesn’t mean they are fully innocent either.

But just because someone isn’t innocent doesn’t mean we need to drag their names through the mud or completely demolish any chance they have at caring for themselves or their family.

And just because the evidence points against someone you don’t like does not mean that it is to be believed. It’s appalling how many people don’t seem to get that.

Allow for Humanity

None of us are perfect. We’ve all done things we’re ashamed of, yet we’d all be outraged if those mistakes kept us from doing better in the future.

So, for the love of all that is good in this green earth, can we please stop convicting people before we’ve had a chance to try them? And this doesn’t apply simply to the political issues we’re facing. It applies to everyday interactions.

Just because that one guy has an especially punchable face does not mean he’s an irredeemably terrible person, nor does it mean you should punch him, satisfying as that might be.

Just because someone was rude to you does not mean they aren’t worthy of your kindness.

Just because you’ve been slighted does not mean hellfire and damnation should be called upon those who wronged you. Remember, you don’t matter any more than anyone else, so why should vengeance be yours?

And just because someone did something wrong in the past does not mean they are incapable of doing anything good today. We’re all a mix of good an evil. We’re all struggling to figure out how to get the good parts of us to win out.

So cease condemning people, especially before they are properly tried.

And as long as anyone yet draws breath, their trial hasn’t ended yet.

What are your thoughts? Do you agree? Do you think I’m a jerk? Let me know in the comments! Also, share this with your friends! All proceeds go toward rehabilitation services for people with punchable faces. Really.