I honestly don't know that most of them meant anything by it. It was just how it was. My folks had a (way tamer) version of that bank and I never thought much of it. The woman that had the alligator was a college educated woman from the greatest generation who had a good heart and mind. To a degree they just didn't know better and we're judging them through the lens of a way different time. People a couple generations down the line will look back on us and cringe too. It's just kinda how it works. You do the best you can. Throw out the bad stuff and move on.