Florida's Controversial Education Law Becomes a Headache for Disney

Disney employees in the United States decided to leave their workplaces this week to demonstrate during their daily break. The reason for your discontent? The company's reaction to a law banning teaching sexual orientation issues in Florida schools.

The law has become a headache for Disney since before it was passed last week in that state's parliament, where the entertainment giant employs more than 75,000 people in its Orlando amusement park.

The problems began with an internal note sent by the company's CEO, Bob Chapek, on March 7, after meeting with members of the company's LGBTI community.

In the document, quoted by several local media outlets, the director was reluctant to have Disney oppose Florida law. Chapek argued that company releases “do very little to change things or minds” and, instead, “are often used as weapons on one side or the other to divide.”

The publication of these statements sparked a rain of criticism, as many viewed them as a lack of support for the LGBTI community. A campaign to boycott the company began to circulate on social media.

Among the toughest detractors was Abigail Disney, granddaughter of Roy O. Disney, co-founder of the company with her brother Walt.

“Many LGBTI people and their allies work for Disney or seek their support,” the activist and documentary producer wrote on Twitter. “But Chapek is more concerned about the reaction of the right wing than about his loyal supporters and employees.”

Florida law, dubbed “Don't Say Gay” by its opponents, prohibits teachers from discussing issues of gender identity and sexual orientation with their students from preschool through third grade, when they are eight or nine years old.

Critics claim that the text harms young people and parents of the LGBTI community and is part of a conservative offensive launched months ago by the Republican Party, which controls the parliament and government of that state in the southeastern United States.

- New setbacks -

The executive director tried to quickly settle the controversy. On March 9, during the annual shareholders' meeting, he announced that Disney would give $5 million to pro-LGBTI groups.

He also claimed that he had called Florida's governor, Republican Ron DeSantis, to express “the company's disappointment and concern” over a law that “could be used to unfairly target gay, lesbian, non-binary and transgender children and families,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

Chapek failed to put out the fire. On the same day, Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest American advocacy organization for the LGBTI community, rejected Disney's donation as long as the company does not work to prevent proposals like those in Florida from “becoming dangerous laws.”

And the weekly magazine Variety published a letter signed by LGBTI workers from the Pixar animation studio, in which they denounced that “almost all moments of openly gay affection” in their works “are cut off at the behest of Disney.”

Criticism raged on social media, and controversy escalated when media outlets revealed that politicians receiving Disney donations in Florida included several Republican senators in favor of the controversial education law.

Last Friday, Chapek announced in a statement the suspension of all political donations in Florida until further notice.

But that decision did not convince the group of Disney LGBTI employees who called for this week's protests.

In a text published on the internet, that group demanded permanent withdrawal of payments to politicians involved in Florida law and criticized the directive for its “apathy”.

“The recent statements and lack of action by Disney directors regarding Florida law “have not lived up to the magnitude of the threat to LGBTI security posed by this legislation,” the statement said.

“Disney must reaffirm the company's commitment to protecting and defending its LGBTI personnel, even in the face of political risk,” he adds.

The week of demonstrations will end next Tuesday with a general strike called throughout the country.

GMA/RSR