LGBTQIA+ Disney Employees and Allies Planning Walkouts Following Company’s Poor Response to ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill

Shannen Ace

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LGBTQIA+ Disney Employees and Allies Planning Walkouts Following Company’s Poor Response to ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill

Employees and Cast Members of The Walt Disney Company are planning a series of walkouts in the next week in protest of the company’s response to the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

It was discovered a few weeks ago that Disney had donated to every sponsor of the Parental Rights in Education bill, a.k.a. the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. After a series of statements failing to denounce the bill, CEO Bob Chapek finally said that Disney was against it and would be better allies to the LGBTQIA+ community in the future, later sending an email to apologize to Cast Members.

A group of LGBTQIA+ workers and allies in the company have released a statement and petition, and are planning a series of walkouts. Their Twitter is @DisneyWalkout and their website is WhereIsChapek.com. The petition is available here.

The homepage of the website states:

The Walt Disney Company’s (TWDC) LGBTQIA+ community and their allies are determined to take a stand against TWDC’s apathy in the face of the bigoted “Don’t Say Gay” bill put forth by the FL state legislature.

The recent statements and lack of action by TWDC leadership regarding the “Don’t Say Gay” bill have utterly failed to match the magnitude of the threat to LGBTQIA+ safety represented by this legislation.

As a community, we have been forced into an impossible and unsustainable position. We must now take action to convince TWDC to protect employees and their families in the face of such open and unapologetic bigotry.

Starting the week of March 14th we will begin a series of collective actions together in order to make our voices and demands heard!

The website includes a list of demands, employee statements, a schedule of planned walkouts, and instructions for employees planning to participate. The first walkout is scheduled for today, Tuesday, March 15, 2022, between 3:00 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. More are planned for each weekday through March 22.

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5 thoughts on “LGBTQIA+ Disney Employees and Allies Planning Walkouts Following Company’s Poor Response to ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill”

  1. Aw come on. Didn’t any of them hear that Disney was trying to deal with it behind the scenes and now are planning to protect them publicly. Someone should let them know. I mean if they can do this then what’s to stop someone from making a movement to get rid of the CEO no matter what the cost.

  2. Okay I saw that they acknowledged that statement of wanting to help them but I’m sure they they intend to do more.

  3. Only withdrawal of OUR money can change Disney for the better

    We ALL need to remember that Susan Arnold HOLDS THE STRINGS on Chapek, and Chapek holds the strings on Josh D’Amaro, so Arnold is the ABSOLUTE top. I therefore think that if Disney starts making major losses, shareholders might vote against ARNOLD and reinstate a better Chairman who can make more changes than ANY CEO.

    If I could I’d draw a diagram in this comment showing the chain of influence shareholders have over who stays and who goes, and how much they rely on our money:

    1. Shareholders are the top of the Greed Circle/Centipide
    2. Chairman Sue Arnold
    3. Followed by CEO Bob Chapek (SECOND in command)
    4. Followed by Josh D’Amaro (whom EVERYONE GIVES A PASS) for the decisions made in the park
    5. And then finally WE are at the back of that centipede having to gobble up poor value. If we just refuse to feed Disney our money, then it might make some difference

    Only gutting Disney of all its money can truly wake shareholders UP and get them to take charge, and hopefully shake up the ENTIRE BOARD to revitalize Disney. As bad as Chapek may be (and make NO mistake, he is terrible), Disney isn’t the way it is because him ALONE, but rather just the overall culture of the company

  4. Disney is reaping what they sow. For years, they have promoted the LGBT agenda to max and now those same CMs are “revolting” against that same company. I hope people now see how when you dabble in things OUTSIDE of your business periphery, such as woke-ness and politics, it always back fires. Shameful.

  5. Disney needs to concentrate on making their customers happy and stop the politics. When you are a company that chooses sides, you are doomed. There are a lot of people out there that support the Parental Rights bill. Disney should not take a stand one way or the other. If they stay out of the political arena, all their guests will be happy. Stay out of politics Disney.

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