Disney employees have had enough of the two-faced rhetoric of their CEO Bob Chapek.

Disney animators and other employees are speaking out today about an internal company memo that was sent out in relation to Florida's controversial new "Don't Say Gay" bill, which, among other horrible things, would require educators to divulge to parents if a child comes out to them as LGBTQ+ within six weeks, or face serious repercussions. This bill puts countless children at serious risk of emotional and even physical abuse from intolerant parents or guardians, and only serves to further stigmatize being gay in the eyes of a new generation.

The bill has already passed in the Florida House, and is now awaiting confirmation by the Senate, who are also poised to pass it. There has been significant protest around the bill in Florida and across the country - and therefore many Disney employees were put off by the fact that Disney only offered this internal statement in response to the bill:

"In terms of our communities, we are and will continue to be a leader in supporting organizations that champion diversity. In 2021, we provided nearly $3 million to support the work of LGBTQ+ organizations. And, we have a long history of supporting important events like Pride parades." Directly addressing Disney's silence on the bill, Chapek added, "I do not want anyone to mistake a lack of statement for a lack of support. We all share the same goal of a more tolerant, respectful world. Where we may differ is in the tactics to get there."

The memo was deemed a weak response right away, especially in light of the fact that Disney has been donating to the campaigns of a known supporter for this bill for years.

Employees who seemingly had enough upon seeing this lukewarm, notably non-public response decided to make their own statements on Twitter.


"[Disney is] starting to include more LGBT characters that let kids know that being gay is all right. But when they have donated to the sponsors and co-sponsors of the 'Don't Say Gay' bill and they have made no position against this bill, and they are going to continue donating to these politicians, they are essentially saying that this bill is OK.

"This bill is going to hurt kids, and that's why I'm asking Disney to please take a position on the 'Don't Say Gay' bill and say that it's wrong and say that you're going to stop donating to the politicians that vote for it."  

One notable statement came from Dana Terrace, creator of Disney Channel's The Owl House, which has a huge LGBTQ+ fan following and is the first Disney show to feature a same-sex love story. Terrace, who has likely had to fight many, many of these battles behind the scenes already, had a lot to say:

"Disney was recently found out to be donating large sums of money, hundreds of thousands of dollars, to the sponsors and co-sponsors of the 'Don't Say Gay' bill, a bill that effectively tells LGBT+ kids, 'You don't exist. You don't deserve to exist. You shouldn't even be talked about.'" 

This is a brave thing these employees are doing. Disney is a huge corporation with a lot of power, and they know they could lose their jobs for speaking out - but they're doing it because they know it's right, and because this bill is deeply, egregiously wrong. If it passes, it will put thousands of already vulnerable children in very real danger. For a company that's supposed to be about encouraging and inspiring kids, that's an appalling thing to support.

Tags: Bob Chapek Dana Terrace