Walt Disney Co. Condemns ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill As Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Signs It Into Law

deadline.com:

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Monday signed a new law that bans instruction of gender identity and sexual orientation for public school children from Kindergarten to the third grade, drawing condemnation from one of the state’s largest employers, The Walt Disney Co.“Florida’s HB 1557, also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed into law.,” a spokesperson for the company said “Our goal as a company is for this law to be repealed by the legislature or struck down in the courts, and we remain committed to supporting the national and state organizations working to achieve that.

We are dedicated to standing up for the rights and safety of LGBTQ+ members of the Disney family, as well as the LGBTQ+ community in Florida and across the country.”The company had been criticized — from activists to employees — for not speaking out earlier to try to stop the legislation as it made it through the statehouse.

Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Chapek acknowledged that it was a mistake not to do so, after earlier saying that the company preferred to work behind the scenes.DeSantis signed the legislation while surrounded by children.“We will make sure that parents can send their kids to school to get an education, not an indoctrination,” the governor said, per the AP.Similar legislation is being proposed in other states, including Georgia, where the entertainment industry has a large production presence.The bill says that “classroom instruction by school personnel or third parties on sexual orientation or gender identity may not occur in kindergarten through grade 3 or in a manner that is not age appropriate or developmentally appropriate for students in accordance with state standards.”