One investor in The Walt Disney Company is suing after the entertainment giant relentlessly condemned Florida’s parental rights law.
In a 22-page lawsuit filed Friday, Kenneth Simeone demanded Disney turn over its internal records about its opposition to a law many on the left and in the media mischaracterized as the “Don’t Say Gay bill.”
According to the New York Post, the court filing stated, “The financial repercussions from Disney’s actions, and resulting harm to the company and its stockholders, have been swift and severe.”
The law in question prohibits public school educators from teaching children in pre-K through third-grade classrooms about gender identity and sexual orientation.
As a result of the criticism of the law led by the recently fired Disney CEO Bob Chapek — the company lost its special tax privileges.
Not only will Disney lose its many tax benefits, but the company will also lose many of its freedoms in addressing its own problems as well as making improvements to the Orlando parks internally.
When the current RCID agreement ends its term, Disney could be weighed down by billions of dollars of debt.
The board of The Walt Disney Company fired Chapek in late November, and reinstated his predecessor, Bob Iger, as the company’s chief executive.
Iger said he regrets Disney was “dragged” into a political battle with Florida lawmakers.
“What I can say is, the state of Florida has been important to us for a long time, and we have been very important to the state of Florida,” Iger said. “That is something I’m extremely mindful of and will articulate if I get the chance.”
During an interview with Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) argued that the state “didn’t drag them in” to the debate, “They went in on their own, and not only opposed the bill. They threatened to get it repealed.”
DeSantis was referring to a statement Disney released in which the company said its “goal” was to see the Parental Rights in Education law “repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that.”
Statement from The Walt Disney Company on signing of Florida legislation: pic.twitter.com/UVI7Ko3aKS
— Walt Disney Company (@WaltDisneyCo) March 28, 2022
DeSantis continued, “These are parents’ rights, important policies in our state that are very popular, and so they brought this on themselves. All we did was stand up for what’s right. And, yes, they’re a big, powerful company. But you know what? We stand up for our folks. And I don’t care what a Burbank-based California company says about our laws.”
Disney’s popularity has taken a hit since the controversy over the Florida law and other recent choices in their programming.
As reported by Faithwire,
“In May, a survey commissioned by NBC News found just 33% of respondents had a “very” or “somewhat” positive view of The Walt Disney Company. Those numbers came one year after a different polling firm, Public Opinion Strategies, conducting a similar study, finding 77% had a favorable view of Disney.”
