whistle while you walk out

Disney employees are planning a walkout Tuesday over the company’s response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

LGBTQ Disney workers recently announced plans for walkouts during 15 minute break periods beginning March 15, and they said that on March 22, “we will engage in a full stage walkout,” ABC News reports. Plans for the walkout were publicized on a website called WhereIsChapek.com, referencing Disney CEO Bob Chapek, although it’s not yet clear how many Disney staffers may participate. 

Chapek faced criticism earlier this month for his silence on Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which prohibits schools from discussing sexual orientation or gender identity with young students. Chapek initially resisted calls for Disney to release a statement opposing the bill, but after days of criticism, he said Disney is against the legislation and apologized for his earlier stance. 

“Speaking to you, reading your messages, and meeting with you have helped me better understand how painful our silence was,” Chapek said in a memo. “It is clear that this is not just an issue about a bill in Florida, but instead yet another challenge to basic human rights.” 

Chapek also announced Disney would pause its political donations in Florida. But a statement on the WhereIsChapek website said the “recent statements and lack of action by [The Walt Disney Company] leadership regarding the ‘Don’t Say Gay or Trans’ bill have utterly failed to match the magnitude of the threat to LGBTQIA+ safety represented by this legislation.”  

The website also laid out a list of demands, including that Disney “publicly commit to an actionable plan that protects employees from hateful legislation” and “cease all campaign donations to these politicians” who supported the bill. “A temporary pause is not enough,” the website said. 

On Tuesday, Disney+ in a statement said it stands with its LGBTQIA+ employees and “we strongly denounce all legislation that infringes on the basic human rights of people in the LGBTQIA+ community.”