Things We Saw Today: Disney Employees Post Open Letter Against ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill

Disney and CEO Bob Chapek are still experiencing some well deserved fallout from their inadequate response to Florida’s dehumanizing “Don’t Say Gay” bill. The company came under fire after it was revealed that they donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the writers and supporters of the virulently homophobic and transphobic legislation. In response, Disney’s LGBTQIA+ employees and allies have planned a week of walkouts, both virtual and in-person. The group also published a list of demands in an open letter to Chapek.

The organizers wrote, “The recent statements by The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) leadership regarding the Florida legislature’s recent ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill have utterly failed to match the magnitude of the threat to LGBTQIA+ safety represented by this legislation, … Primarily, those statements have indicated that leadership still does not truly understand the impact this legislation is having not only on cast members in the state of Florida, but on all members of the LGBTQIA+ community in the company and beyond. While we certainly appreciate Bob Chapek’s apology note, there is still more work to be done.”

The demands include ceasing donations to politicians involved with the “Don’t Say gay” bill, as well as “publicly commit to an actionable plan that protects employees from hateful legislation.” This includes ceasing any construction or investments in Florida, and providing a network of support of LGBTQIA employees and their families. In addition, the group demands that Disney donate money to human rights advocacy groups like the Trevor Project and Trans Lifeline.

They continued, “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.” You can find out more about the protests and letter at Whereischapek.com. We stand in solidarity with these employees and their mission.

(image: Disney)

• Also at Disney: Damon Lindelof may be directing a Star Wars movie. (via The Ankler)
• Sigh. A new study finds that men outnumber women 2 to 1 in film. (via THR)
• Support Taylor Walker’s indie comic ‘The Candy Lady’. (via Kickstarter)

• Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger vows he will never appear on Tucker Carlson’s show. (via HuffPost)
• Watch Succession’s Brian Cox recreate Sydney Sweeney’s Euphoria meltdown. (via Pajiba)
• Vimeo is hiking their prices for content creators. (via The Verge)

 —The Mary Sue has a strict comment policy that forbids, but is not limited to, personal insults toward anyone, hate speech, and trolling.—