Disney creative leaders express frustration to CEO Chapek over ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill response
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Bob Chapek is the Disney Chief Executive Officer at Boston College, November 15, 2021.
Charles Krupa | AP
CNBC has learned that Disney’s senior leaders have voiced their dissatisfaction with CEO Bob Chapek’s treatment of the Florida “Don’t Say Gay Bill”.
Following the company’s annual conference last Wednesday, Chapek met up with top leadership from its creative studios. People expressed their frustration at Disney’s refusal to stand firm against the bill.
Employees also raised concerns in the wake of the meeting, saying Chapek didn’t respond critically to homophobic comments made by a shareholder during the Q&A period, according to the people, who asked to remain anonymous to discuss internal conversations at Disney.
Disney and Chapek faced pressure to come out in support of the Parental Rights in Education Bill in Florida. The legislation prohibits discussion of sexual orientation and gender identityIn public schools from kindergarten to third grade. The bill has been called “Don’t Say Gay” by those opposed to it.
The people reported that executives had been holding town halls with employees over the last week to listen to their concerns and frustrations. A Friday email Chapek sent to employees to assure them of his support for the LGBTQ+ community and to suspend all Florida political donations, was a reassuring message.
Many people are still waiting for the company to take the appropriate actions against the bill. On Tuesday, some employees protested the bill by organizing a walkout.
The time for the company’s “reimagine tomorrow event” is when the walkout will be held. The March 2 event was set. These regular meetings, which typically discuss timely topics and are held every month, were scheduled for March 2. Tuesday’s event will be called “LGBTQ+ Employees Leaders and Allies get Disney Real”.
Invitations to the event were sent on Thursday morning. They stated: “Employees are invited to an honest discussion about how the ‘Don’t Say Gay Bill’ and any other pending legislation will impact LGBTQ+ families and children. To hold this company responsible, LGBTQ+BERG leaders have gathered allies and organized internal meetings. How can we rebuild trust between our LGBTQ+ employees and the company?
Uncertain how many will be participating in Tuesday’s walkout. A small percentage of workers have not been working on the lot.
Disney has not commented on the article.
Chapek addressed employees’ frustrations in Friday email.
He said, “Thanks to everyone who reached out to share your grief and frustration over the Florida Don’t Say Gay bill response. It was incredibly difficult for me to understand the pain of our silence by speaking with you, listening to your messages, and even meeting up with you. The issue is not about Florida’s bill, it is about basic human rights. It was your expectation that I would be an ally to you in the struggle for equal rights. I am sorry.”
He stated that his company was increasing support for advocacy organizations to fight similar legislation in other states to “Don’t Say Gay”, and is suspending all political donations to Florida.
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