‘Don’t Say Gay’ unexpected showdown between Florida, Disney rporatn | PBS NewsHour

Contents:

• AFTER PROTTS, DISNEY CEO SPEAKS OUT AGAST FLORIDA'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL
• DISNEY VOWS TO HELP REPEAL 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW, SAYS FLORIDA GOV. DESANTIS SHOULDN'T HAVE SIGNED
• DISNEY EMPLOYE STAGE WALKOUT TO MAND ACTN AGAST 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL
• DISNEY CEO BOB IGER ADDRS 'DON'T SAY GAY' FALLOUT, IMPORTANCE OF LGBTQ CLN STORI
• DISNEY’S “DON’T SAY GAY” STANCE WASN’T THE FIRST TIME BETRAYED S LGBTQ FANS
• OPN: 3 THGS DISNEY SHOULD DO AFTER S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BLUNR
• DISNEY'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' MISSTEP HOLDS A KEY LSON: CEOS ARE HUMAN-RIGHTS LEARS NOW, WHETHER THEY LIKE OR NOT
• DISNEY TO LOSE SPECIAL TAX STAT FOR OPPOSG FLORIDA’S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL
• DISNEY WORKERS WALK OUT OVER THE PANY'S RPONSE TO SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL
• DISNEY CEO SAYS PANY OPPOS 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL FLORIDA, SEEKS MEETG WH DESANTIS
• ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ UNEXPECTED SHOWDOWN BETWEEN FLORIDA, DISNEY RPORATN
• DISNEY CEO APOLOGIZ FOR ‘SILENCE’ ON ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL
• DISNEY’S CEO IS FIRG BACK AGAST RON “DON’T SAY GAY” DESANTIS, & THIS FD IS ABOUT TO GET EVEN MSIER

AFTER PROTTS, DISNEY CEO SPEAKS OUT AGAST FLORIDA'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL

The so-lled 'Don't Say Gay' bill was passed by Florida's Hoe and Senate and is head to Gov. Ron DeSantis Wednday morng, "to exprs our disappotment and ncern that if the legislatn be law, uld be ed to unfairly target gay, lbian, non-bary and transgenr kids and fai.

"The Human Rights Campaign will not accept this money om Disney until we see them build on their public mment and work wh LGBTQ+ advot to ensure that dangero proposals, like Florida's Don't Say Gay or Trans bill, don't bee dangero laws, and if they do, to work to get them off the books, " says Joni Madison, Interim Print of the Human Rights Campaign a statement. Acrdg to the acuntabily news se Popular Informatn, " the last two years, Disney has donated $197, 162 to members of the Florida legislature that have already voted for the 'Don't Say Gay' legislatn, " cludg to sponsors of the bill, Florida Rep. " On Sunday, before the so-lled "Don't Say Gay" bill passed the state Senate, Siemon posted an impassned vio plea llg for Disney to say the legislatn is wrong.

Siemon creds one of his middle school teachers for helpg him unrstand that was OK to be gay. Siemon implored the pany to stop supportg those policians, endg wh the words, "Disney, please say gay.

DISNEY VOWS TO HELP REPEAL 'DON'T SAY GAY' LAW, SAYS FLORIDA GOV. DESANTIS SHOULDN'T HAVE SIGNED

”The Walt Disney Company, one of the world’s biggt media and entertament empir, pris self on a lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer (LGBTQ) iendly culture. But today s reputatn for clivy and tolerance is unr scty – as are s ep ti to the polil tablishment and the lack of LGBTQ reprentatn s ’s workers have been stagg walkouts prott at chief executive Bob Chapek’s lackltre rponse to Florida legislatn dubbed “don’t say gay”.

DISNEY EMPLOYE STAGE WALKOUT TO MAND ACTN AGAST 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL

But their prejudic were laid bare by a tweet om Christa Phaw, prs secretary for Florida’s ernor, Ron DeSantis, that said: “The bill that liberals accurately ll ‘don’t say gay’ would be more accurately scribed as an anti-groomg bill.

It has been nmned as “hateful” by Joe Bin and other Democrats who argue that monis LGBTQ, prs secretary of the LGBTQ rights anisatn Equaly Florida and a survivor of the Pulse nightclub shootg 2016, says: “The ‘don’t say gay bill’ was dubbed that by the muny bee is a bigoted, very specifilly anti-LGBTQ piece of legislatn signed to censor classroom speech about our muny.

DISNEY CEO BOB IGER ADDRS 'DON'T SAY GAY' FALLOUT, IMPORTANCE OF LGBTQ CLN STORI

Photograph: Chris Pizzello/Invisn/APYet the “don’t say gay” bill wrong-footed Chapek, who succeed Bob Iger as chief executive Febary 2020. They give to a lot of Democrats, bee they want those Democrats to be on their si too, but they have given a disproportnate amount to Republin legislators, many of whom supported and voted for the ‘don’t say gay’ bill.

The Human Rights Campaign has said will stop acceptg money om Disney “until we see them build on their public mment and work wh LGBTQ+ advot to ensure that dangero proposals, like Florida’s ‘don’t say gay or trans’ bill, don’t bee dangero laws” Whehall and Ey Blunt Jungle Cise. Eric Marc, creator and host of the Makg Gay History podst, says: “Disney has cultivated an LGBTQ-iendly image, both through their cln of LGBTQ characters recent years and wh their employe, so ’s shockg but not shockg that the CEO would have been so flat-footed. Photograph: APFor s the stud’s output was steadfastly heterosexual even though s creative talents clud gay people such as Howard Ashman, an Osr wner who wrote the lyrics for The Ltle Mermaid and Bety and the Beast before his ath om Aids has been some progrs sce then wh a growg LGBTQ portrayals films and TV shows and the sellg of LGBTQ pri-themed merchandise at Disney stor.

DISNEY’S “DON’T SAY GAY” STANCE WASN’T THE FIRST TIME BETRAYED S LGBTQ FANS

Last year’s film Jungle Cise featured a proment gay character: McGregor Houghton, played by Jack Whehall.

“Nearly every moment of overtly gay affectn is cut at Disney’s beht, regardls of when there is prott om both the creative teams and executive learship at Pixar.

Ron DeSantis signed Florida's so-lled "Don't Say Gay" bill to law on Monday, the Walt Disney Company nmned the legislatn and vowed to help have repealed. "Florida's HB 1557, also known as the 'Don't Say Gay' bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed to law, " the pany said a statement.

OPN: 3 THGS DISNEY SHOULD DO AFTER S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BLUNR

"Walt Disney employe and monstrators durg a rally agast the Florida "Don't Say Gay" bill at Griffh Park Glendale, California, U.

DISNEY'S 'DON'T SAY GAY' MISSTEP HOLDS A KEY LSON: CEOS ARE HUMAN-RIGHTS LEARS NOW, WHETHER THEY LIKE OR NOT

LGBTQ workers and employee alli at The Walt Disney Company staged a walkout prott of Florida's Parental Rights Edutn bill, dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" bill by employe have been walkg out each day sce March 15 om 3 to 3:15 p. "The Walt Disney Company’s (TWDC) LGBTQIA+ muny and their alli are termed to take a stand agast TWDC’s apathy the face of the bigoted 'Don’t Say Gay' bill put forth by the FL state legislature, " the prott's webse employe prott agast Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, Glendale, California, March 22, Chiu/Rters"The recent statements and lack of actn by TWDC learship regardg the 'Don’t Say Gay' bill have utterly failed to match the magnu of the threat to LGBTQIA+ safety reprented by this legislatn, " the webse says. It would also allow parents to sue schools that engage the employe prott agast Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, Glendale, California, March 22, Chiu/RtersDisney CEO Bob Chapek has been cricized for his rponse to the bill, first for his silence on the legislatn and later for not outright nmng the bill his public has sce said he would pledge $5 ln to groups advotg for LGTBQ+ rights and protectns and add that he has ntacted Gov.

DISNEY TO LOSE SPECIAL TAX STAT FOR OPPOSG FLORIDA’S ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL

Dunn herself took a moment of silence durg her broadst employe prott agast Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, Glendale, California, March 22, Chiu/Rters"We unrstand the gravy of this legislatn and also how is affectg so many fai across this untry, and bee of that our allyship is gog to take a ont seat, and wh that, we're gog to pse solidary, " Dunn 's Carolyn Peck and Courtney Lyle also remaed silent for two mut solidary wh their workers durg the Women's NCAA Tournament. Valerie Man | AFP | Getty ImagFollowg cricism of s past handlg of LGBTQ issu, Disney CEO Bob Iger on Monday told employe that cln and acceptance are among the "re valu" of the pany's remarks e after Disney had faced cricism unr prev CEO Bob Chapek for s handlg of Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill, which banned stctn on sexual orientatn and genr inty krgarten through third gra. Disney's recent cln of unambiguoly gay characters animated films has also drawn cricism om anti-LGBTQ activists.

Its newt animated release, "Strange World, " also clus a ma character who is gay and has a csh on a boy the was praised for s cln of such characters, but many felt the pany did not do enough to support the cisns when they received backlash om some nservative Monday, Iger poted to films like "Black Panther" and "Co" as exampl of Disney projects that "changed the world for good.

DISNEY WORKERS WALK OUT OVER THE PANY'S RPONSE TO SO-LLED 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL

Over the last few s, no pany has done a better job at pturg fans across seemgly every kd of mographic — all rac, all religns, young and old, straight and gay — all while slyly beg the most powerful entertament enty on the pla.

Over the past week, the entertament juggernt flipped and flopped an attempt to reassure s employe and s massive fanbase about s posn on Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill. After an open letter om LGBTQ Pixar staff and their alli alleged that Disney had actively scbbed “overtly gay affectn” and queer reprentatn om their movi, Chapek emailed employe that the pany would halt all polil donatns Florida on Friday, and donate to groups fightg siar legislatn other stat.

How Disney Gays feel about the pany and s “Don’t Say Gay” stance. He was also gay and died of AIDS 1991. Berg self-intifi as a “Disney Gay, ” havg worked at the Disney Store the Mall of Ameri.

DISNEY CEO SAYS PANY OPPOS 'DON'T SAY GAY' BILL FLORIDA, SEEKS MEETG WH DESANTIS

Dpe the existence of sgg flatware and an unrsea kgdom where the buff mermaid sea kg’s favore thg is mils featurg his many dghters, there are no actual gay characters Bety and the Beast or The Ltle Mermaid.

“Ltle Mermaid had songs wrten by a gay person the late ’80s. Sce the ceptn of “Gay Days” (a day where LGBTQ people go en masse to a Disney theme park) the 1990s, Disney has passively supported the unofficially anized celebratns.

Berg explaed that the small actns have allowed queer fans to fet about how Disneyland once had a policy that prohibed same-sex dancg, ultimately stck down by the Orange County Superr Court 1984, or that a gay executive filed a sexual orientatn discrimatn su agast the pany 2021.

‘DON’T SAY GAY’ UNEXPECTED SHOWDOWN BETWEEN FLORIDA, DISNEY RPORATN

Disney’s stance on “Don’t Say Gay” and s alignment wh Florida’s anti-gay lawmakers was a remr that the pany isn’t as progrsive as says is.

“Listen, if you were emotnally moved any way by WandaVisn, you’re the same pot wh the rt of Disney Gays, ” Sass said, summarizg how hard is for anyone upset about the “Don’t Say Gay” bill to avoid Disney’s properti. There hasn’t been nearly as much nversatn about how “Don’t Say Gay” would affect Universal Studs and s Wizardg World of Harry Potter, which also operate Orlando. “I would like to see Disney be overtly gay and be overtly vol about their support for s LGBTQ fans and employe, ” said Garcia, explag that anythg but ser actn jt seems like a PR move.

Garcia, who says he is “hella gay” and has over 95, 000 followers on Instagram, promot Disney’s theme parks on social media.

DISNEY CEO APOLOGIZ FOR ‘SILENCE’ ON ‘DON’T SAY GAY’ BILL

He has also posted extensively about his displeasure wh Disney’s “Don’t Say Gay” stance. 'I am eply gay': Kate McKnon mocks Florida's ntroversial bill. First, experienced backlash over s failure to nmn Florida’s new “Don’t Say Gay” law, which will ban schools om teachg stunts the third gra and below about genr inty and sexual orientatn.

Disney should sle back the extent of s bs Florida until the “Don’t Say Gay” law is repealed. The pany should officially regnize and facilate the annual “Gay Days” events that happen at Walt Disney World and Disneyland.

Disney films still clu “gay ntent” that uld easily be missed (LeFou glancg at another man the live-actn versn of “Bety and the Beast, ” and a female uple embracg the background of “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker”). A strategist said Disney's rponse to the so-lled Don't Say Gay law "didn't please anyone. Opponents ll the law "Don't Say Gay" bee rtricts stctn on sexual orientatn or genr inty schools and bans krgarten through third gra.

DISNEY’S CEO IS FIRG BACK AGAST RON “DON’T SAY GAY” DESANTIS, & THIS FD IS ABOUT TO GET EVEN MSIER

Florida legislators passed a bill on Thursday that would revoke Walt Disney Co’s special tax stat a move wily seen as t-for-tat for the pany’s opposn to a new “don’t say gay” state law limg discsn of LGBTQ+ issu bill now heads to the sk of Governor Ron DeSantis, who is all but guaranteed to sign Republin-led state hoe Florida voted 70-38 to do away wh a special tax district created by a 1967 law that allows Disney to self-ern the roughly 25, 000-acre Orlando area where s Walt Disney World theme park plex is loted.