Disney employees are staging walkouts over Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The CEO of The Walt Disney Company apologized for having nothing to say after the company came under fire for giving money to politicians. Many of Disney's queer employees feel that steps are not enough and are taking action to make that point clear to the company's leadership.

A number of Disney employees are planning to walk out for 15 minutes on March 22nd in response to Disney's actions. In an open letter published to WhereIsChapek.com, a website created by a number of the staffers who organized the Disney Do Better Walkout, the employees expressed their appreciation for Chapek's apology but took to task how Disney has done things.

Those statements have indicated that leadership still does not understand the impact this legislation is having on cast members in the state of Florida, as well as all members of the LGBTQIA+ community in the company and beyond.

The bill makes it illegal for teachers to discuss queerness or queer people with their students, even though the concepts of sexual and gender identity are not actually true. The bill does not specify what age-appropriate subject matter would prevent teachers from broaching the topics with older students.

According to the open letter, Disney should continue to tell and sell stories about fictional queer characters in response to real-world homophobic legislation. Pixar's employees pointed out how commonplace it is for queerness to be edited out during the production process on the studio's projects. The people behind the Disney Do Better Walkout understand the power of representation, but they also know that seeing one's self on-screen is not the solution to this particular pressing issue.

The letter states that the ongoing attempts to appease the LGBTQIA+ community with subpar representation in the content produced and donations to well-meaning organizations are simply not enough.

The organizers behind the Disney walk outs said that the current atmosphere within the company is confusing and concern and that some employees have hit a low. The organizers said that Disney's pride and diversity channels have seen a marked increase in activity because of the issue.

The organizers said that the LGBTQIA+ community has been the most vocal and that many allies have stood up to support them.

The organizers want Disney to fulfill a set of demands meant to gain the truth of the LGBTQIA+ community. The organizers vow not to give money to specific politicians, but they also want Disney to commit to an actionable plan that protects employees based in Florida from being harmed by the Don. The organizers want Disney to donate to groups like TheTrevor Project and to redouble its commitment to queer stories and their creators with the creation of a new in-house brand that is specifically meant to focus on queer voices.

As a community, we have been forced into an impossible and unsustainable position and must now take action to convince TWDC to protect employees and their families. Our community in TWDC is strong and we will show you how.

The article was updated with a quote from the group of employees.