Australian Bicentenary claimed the Bicentenary was attempting to re-write the British out of the history of Australia. On 26 January 1988, more than 40,000 people, including aborigines from across the country, staged the largest march in Sydney since the early 1970s Vietnam Moratorium demonstrations. The protesters marched through Sydney chanting for land rights. The march ended at Hyde Park where several prominent aboriginal leaders and activists spoke, among them Gary Foley. Demonstrations were also held in other cities and towns including Canberra. This was part of a wider Bicentennial Boycott movement which started in the leadup to the Bicentennial. When it was
Critter Country was themed to the forests of the Pacific Northwest. Country Bear Jamboree, which opened three weeks later, was the new land's centerpiece attraction. Bear Country was also home to the Golden Bear Lodge, an eatery which was renamed Hungry Bear Restaurant in 1977, the Mile Long Bar refreshment center, Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade, and Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes. Bear Country was renamed Critter Country in 1988 in anticipation of Splash Mountain's January 1989 opening. Critter Country was inspired by a quote from the 1946 film "Song of the South": "Where the folks are closer to the critters and the critters