LGBTQ Groups Outraged That Disney Denounced Georgia’s 2016 Anti-Gay Law But Not Florida’s New ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill
state Senate on Thursday passed a “Don’t Say Gay” bill that would ban “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” in primary schools, LGBTQ groups expressed outrage that Disney, one of the state’s biggest employers, has not voiced its opposition to the legislation.
In fact, Disney CEO Bob Chapek defended the company’s silence in an internal memo to staff on Monday and argued that corporate statements on political issues like the “Don’t Say Gay” bill can be “weaponized” and are often “counterproductive.”Jean-Marie Navetta, director of Learning and Inclusion for PFLAG National, told TheWrap that Chapek’s memo represented a “complete turnaround from the way Disney has behaved in the past” on such issues.
In 2016, under previous CEO Bob Iger, Disney pressured then-Georgia Governor Nathan Deal to reject a bill that would have allowed faith-based organizations to refuse services to LGBTQ+ individuals that might violate their religious beliefs.
The studio threatened to “take our business elsewhere” and refuse to continue filming in the state — where it had shot multiple Marvel blockbusters in Atlanta-area soundstages.
