Jose Castillo, a Disney employee and Florida Republican Congressional candidate, said cast members who support the Parental Rights in Education bill far outnumber those protesting it. From Fox News:
“There is immense pressure to toe the company line,” Castillo told Fox News Digital. “However, the reality is that those drawing attention to this issue are in the minority. The Disney cast members who support the parental rights defended by HB 1557 far outnumber those who are protesting against it.”Castillo claimed that “Disney and similar corporations listen to the loudest voices in the crowd,” even though the “silent majority” of employees disagree. “That is why I am standing up for our shared conservative values; to show other conservative cast members like me that we need to speak up and stand strong.”
The bill that passed does not allow classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in grades third and younger. You can discuss these things but nothing instructional.
Most importantly it does not ban the word “gay.” The left went crazy calling it the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Disney blasted the bill.
Then we find out Disney is pushing a “not-so-secret gay agenda” in children’s programming.
Castillo is correct. Other employees signed a letter begging Disney to remain politically neutral. I don’t blame them for staying anonymous:
However, over the last few years, one group of cast members has become invisible within the company. The Walt Disney Company has come to be an increasingly uncomfortable place to work for those of us whose political and religious views are not explicitly progressive. We watch quietly as our beliefs come under attack from our own employer, and we frequently see those who share our opinions condemned as villains by our own leadership.The company’s evolving response to the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” legislation in Florida has left many of us wondering what place we have in a company actively promoting a political agenda so far removed from our own. TWDC leadership frequently communicates its commitment to creating an inclusive workplace where cast members feel comfortable sharing their perspectives and being their authentic selves at work. That is not our workplace experience.Over the last few weeks, we have watched as our leadership has expressed their condemnation for laws and policies we support. We have watched as our colleagues, convinced that no one in the company could possibly disagree with them, grow increasingly aggressive in their demands. They insist that TWDC take a strong stance on not only this issue but other legislation and openly advocate for the punishment of employees who disagree with them.
The letter mentions an internal poll taken “a few months ago asking us if we felt accepted in the company.” A lot of the employees did not complete it because they worried the “nature of the questions” would make them targets since they didn’t go along with the so-called progressive ideas.
“TWDC has fostered an environment of fear that any employee who does not toe the line will be exposed and dismissed,” wrote the employees.
The employees aren’t even asking the company to swing to the right. They just want Disney to remain neutral. That way everyone can feel welcome and included:
Furthermore, as this politicization makes its way into our content and public messaging, our more conservative customers will feel similarly unwanted. You can only preach at or vilify your audience for so long before they decide to spend their money elsewhere.—CEO, Bob Chapek had the right idea in his original statement that he has since walked back. In Chapek’s own words, “As we have seen time and again, corporate statements do very little to change outcomes or minds. … Instead, they are often weaponized by one side or the other to further divide and inflame.” Disney is far more important and impactful to the world by avoiding politics than it will ever be by embracing a political agenda. By focusing on entertainment that inspires us with stories of universal appeal, we are doing good in the world.Disney shouldn’t be a vehicle for one demographic’s political activism. It’s so much bigger and more important than that. More than ever, the world needs things that we can unite around. That’s the most valuable role The Walt Disney Company could play in the world at this time. It’s a role we’ve played for nearly a century, and it would be a shame to throw all of that away in the face of left-wing political pressure. Please don’t let Disney become just another thing we divide over.
What did Andrew Breitbart say? Oh, yeah. Politics is downstream from culture.
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