Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Bill has prompted a number of responses and actions from Disney employees, Disney’s CEO, Florida’s governor, and more.
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Now, another political figure is chiming in on the situation and inviting Disney to take a different step.
A Quick History
As a quick summary, the Florida Bill at issue is what critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” Bill. The Bill’s formal name is the “Parental Rights in Education bill.” As ABC News notes, the “bill would limit what classrooms can teach about sexual orientation and gender identity.” The Hill shares that the legislation would “restrict mention of LGBTQ+ topics in classrooms that are not ‘age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students.'”
Disney released an initial statement regarding the Bill, which was shared through Good Morning America. In that statement, Disney shared that they feel that the biggest impact they can have in “creating a more inclusive world is through the inspiring content [they] produce, the welcoming culture [they] create here and the diverse community organizations [they] support, including those representing the LGBTQ+ community.”
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Disney’s CEO, Bob Chapek, then sent a memo addressing the Bill. During the Shareholder meeting held in March of 2022, Chapek then issued another statement regarding the Bill. During the Shareholder meeting, Chapek shared that Disney was “opposed to the bill from the outset, but [] chose not to take a public position on it because [they] thought [they] could be more effective working behind the scenes.”
The Bill has been passed by the Florida House and Senate, and is pending Florida Governor DeSantis’ signature.
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During the Shareholder meeting, Chapek also indicated that Disney would be “signing the Human Right’s Campaign’s statement opposing such legislative efforts around the country,” and “pledging $5 million towards organizations,” including the Human Rights Campaign. The Human Rights Campaign then rejected Disney’s donation and issued a statement in response.
We’ve also seen statements regarding this Florida Bill made by Disney Animation, Pixar employees, and more. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has issued some statements regarding the Bill and Disney’s response, Chapek has issued an apology following Disney’s response to the situation, and Disney employees have also planned walkouts in response to the Bill.
Click here to learn about the Bill, what proponents and critics have said, and more.
Response from California’s Governor
Governor Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, recently chimed in on the situation. On Twitter, the Governor reposted an article from the LA Times regarding Disney employees who were reportedly “hurt” and “angry” over Chapek’s response to the Florida “Don’t Say Gay” Bill.
Newsom then made a direct call to Disney and said, “Disney, the door is open to bring those jobs back to California – the state that actually represents the values of your workers.”
Disney, the door is open to bring those jobs back to California – the state that actually represents the values of your workers. https://t.co/kbCi7Zgs90
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) March 13, 2022
Disney had previously announced that they would be moving THOUSANDS of jobs from California to Orlando. We also shared how Disney has made a big land purchase in Orlando for their new campus.
The new campus is expected to be home to “more than 2,000 Cast, Imagineers and employees.” According to what had previously been shared, Disney expects that most of those Cast Members working in Parks, Experiences, and Products professional roles who are located in Southern California and are not fully dedicated to the Disneyland Resort, or the international parks business, will be asked to relocate to the new Florida campus.
Lake Nona Town Center ©Lake Nona
It appears that Governor Newsom’s comments are likely made in reference to some of these jobs that are being relocated. Governor Newsom isn’t the only one making statements regarding the relocation of these jobs. The website that has been built to organize certain walkouts by Disney Employees also lists the following as one of their demands: “Stopping any efforts to move employees to Florida office locations, ensuring employee safety and employment retention.”
And California’s Governor has chimed in on the situation once again. In a Tweet, Governor Newsom called out to Disney and said “We here in California respect your employees’ families. We think our LGBTQ residents are part of what makes our state great. Let’s talk.” Governor Newsom also reposted an article from the Orange County Register entitled “Why Disney Should Rethink Its Florida Expansion, Keep Jobs in California.”
Hey Disney –
We here in California respect your employees’ families.
We think our LGBTQ residents are part of what makes our state great.
Let’s talk.https://t.co/C7QzkiEXWg
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) March 29, 2022
This is a developing situation. We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more updates involving Disney and let you know what we find.
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It is very disingenuous when articles about this controversial bill do not state one of the key facts of the bill – this is only about Kindergarten – 3rd graders and limits lessons on all sexual topics, not just LGBTQ+
I am starting to think that this is very intentional because disclosing that this is about not having formal lessons on sexuality and gender for 4-8 year olds may be reasonable for many people and may blunt the outcry this bill is getting.
Newsom has nothing to do with Florida do he should shut up!
Protecting young children is something we thought Disney would be first in line to do. READ the bill. It does NOT infer any disrespect to the LGBT community. Would you give that 5 year old cigarettes or liquor? AGE APPROPRIATE is the concept here.
Why does Disney still create movies for young children? Should they be allowed to see violent movies? NO. AGE APPROPRIATE.
Sometimes it really is simple and not about dissing anyone else.
Unfortunately, this topic on the Parental Rights Bill in Florida continues to be a current topic. It does not in any way forbid students to talk with teachers about sex or any other concern. The bill is designed to provide parents the appropriate role in their child’s education as well as have any discussions about sex that is appropriate for their family. It clearly states ANY sex education so therefore that includes heterosexual as well. These articles, in my opinion, should have used the legal and appropriate title of this bill, not the irresponsible and false title that has caused this false controversy. These very young children need to have fun, learn respect for all people and in due time, will learn about sex. Disney executives need to read these bills.
It’s not called “Don’t Say Gay” bill! Please people read the bill before judging it. Its not discriminating against anyone. Let children be children. They have no business knowing anything about sex, LGBTQ, straight or gay. My 3 year old is learning his ABC’s, 123’s, colors, shapes, reading and writing. He doesn’t need to know anything about sex, or anything like that until we deem him old enough. This bill is for children in kindergarten to 3rd grade. If you have a problem with that, ask yourself why.
Companies can speak out and that is great. They can align and support inclusion as well but politics is a whole other world. 2,000 workers in Florida means more people to vote out bad policies that could be a good thing. It also can mean more people personally invested in supporting the needs of the youngest people who will suffer from political issues that do not align with a balanced reality. love one another as a brothers and sisters first.
Sexually orientation and gender identity should only be taught to children by their parents and only their parents.
Disney should keep there nose out of it. It has nothing to do with their cast members, it’s about children for crying out loud. Bob needs to pay more attention to a bigger issue that’s going on at Disney like child trafficking. Last week cast members got arrested for the this. Focus on that Bob