In recent weeks, Disney has been taking a lot of heat for declining to release a statement about the infamous ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill and for donating money to elected officials who support the bill.
On Monday, Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Chapek told staff that the company “unequivocally” stands with its LGBTQ+ employees in the wake of the bill passing.
In the memo, Chapek stated that the company’s new chief corporate affairs officer, Geoff Morrel, would be “reassessing our advocacy strategies around the world — including political giving — as he begins to integrate the communications, public policy, government relations and CSR teams.”
Chapek also wanted to make a point that the company has supported politicians who have “taken positions on both sides of the legislation.”
With regards to the company’s decision to not make a statement, he wrote: “I do not want anyone to mistake a lack of statement for a lack of support.”
Twitter has blown up in response to Chapek’s words, with #BoycottDisney trending.
Disney providing "inspiring content" to "support" the LGBTQ+ community is anything BUT support.
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Money talks, and Disney is stabbing the LGBTQ+ community with a gold-plated knife in the back by refusing to stop funding legislators supporting #DontSayGay.#BoycottDisney https://t.co/qPvApJa7iV
— Mike Sarzo 🏳️🌈🟧 (@mikesarzo) March 7, 2022
Bob Chapek is destroying Disney. #BoycottDisney https://t.co/phH5axHGGo
— John Pavlovitz (@johnpavlovitz) March 7, 2022
Disney can keep their “inspiring content” and I’ll keep my money away from their homophobic evil empire. #boycottdisney #grabthembythewallet https://t.co/Oquq14GIor
— SheTweets (@SHacker0210) March 7, 2022
You know, Disney, if you f**ked up so bad that people have #BoycottDisney trending, you KNOW that you should make changes.
Admit what you've done is wrong, cut the funds to the Don't Say Gay bill, and put a person who's an actually decent human being behind your corporation.— Schmuck for life (@McMilnamow) March 7, 2022
Is all that “inspiring content” worth lining the pockets of anti-LGBTQ religious extremists? You decide. #BoycottDisney #BoycottDisneyPlus https://t.co/LjRdBVKTcp
— American Atheists (@AmericanAtheist) March 7, 2022
THREAD 1/While I'm on the subject of Disney funding anti-gay legislators, it is important to point out that they are funding them not because they are anti-gay (they don't actually care that mch about that) but because they are "pro-business."What does it mean to be pro-business?
— Abigail Disney (@abigaildisney) March 6, 2022
To many people, the exact lack of statement does imply a lack of support. For them, Disney refusing to stop funding politicians in support of the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill demonstrates a certain level of apathy towards the LGBTQ+ community.
This news doesn’t come as a surprise to some Twitter users, and many think that people should have been boycotting the mega-corporation for years already.
https://twitter.com/dancemachine48/status/1500899102057324544?s=20&t=YuHJZGkK6icR7EntrOSc4g
https://twitter.com/GrandOlePartyyy/status/1500966643589124105?s=20&t=YuHJZGkK6icR7EntrOSc4g
You #BoycottDisney because they won’t stop funding “Don’t Say Gay” sponsors.
I boycott Disney because they refused to let a father put Spider-Man on his 4-year-old son’s tombstone and filmed Mulan near internment camps in China.
We are not the same. pic.twitter.com/LunZymepMq
— Asher Notheis (@AsherNotheis) March 7, 2022
CEO Bob Chaped has said that he plans to discuss this issue further at the company’s Reimagine Tomorrow Summit, which will be held in April.
For more on this topic, follow the Film & TV Observer.
