Originally published on March 31, 2022
https://www.cnsnews.com/commentary/moshe-hill/disney-throws-fit-over-florida-keeps-mum-france-tokyo-even-california
After acquiring ESPN, Marvel, Star Wars, and 20th Century Fox, the Walt Disney Company is well versed in acquiring large and popular enterprises to bolster its own portfolio. They may have gone too far, though, when they acquired the reins of the Woke Mob by publicly kowtowing to a minute amount of their employees. Now they have to own that Woke Mob, and needless to say, it does not have the same return on investment as “The Avengers.”
Disney has been walking down this path for a while. They’ve placed content warnings on some of their most popular children’s movies, pushed critical race theory on employees, and even modified their own strict dress codes in the name of self-expression. Recently, they announced that they were adding a lesbian kiss into the animated film “Lightyear” because they bought into the lie that Florida’s Parental Rights Law is a “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
To show how far-left Disney has become, Christopher Rufo of City Journal documented Disney’s “Reimagine Tomorrow” event. Disney Corporate President Karey Burke boasted that she has “one transgender child and one pansexual child,” that Disney has “many, many, many LGBTQIA characters,” and that there need to be more “leads” who identify as LGBTQIA. Disney Production Coordinator Allen March pledged to emphasize “gender-nonconforming characters,” “canonical trans characters,” and “canonical bisexual characters.” Disney Diversity and Inclusion Manager Vivian Ware announced that all mentions of the words “ladies,” “gentlemen,” “boys,” and “girls” have been removed from the company’s theme parks.
In a company-wide memo, Disney CEO Bob Chapek said that he met with “Disney LGBTQ+ leaders to discuss controversial legislation pending in Florida that would impact their communities.” The since-passed legislation is only “controversial” because leftist activists made it so. By opening up this can of worms, Disney has a mess on its hands, because their corporate reach far exceeds Florida. Here are just a few locations that Disney has a major stake in, and how they do not conform with the leftist agenda.
Euro Disney.
Euro Disney is located in France, which has a variety of policies that the Left would oppose.
Until recently, France limited abortions to 12 weeks after the start of the woman’s last period. France recently passed an expansion to 14 weeks. They are far more restrictive on abortion than the American Left. In contrast, when Arkansas passed a law in 2019 limiting abortion from 20 weeks to 18 weeks, the ACLU vowed to sue.
In 2018, France passed a restrictive immigration bill, which “shortens asylum application deadlines, doubles the time for which illegal migrants can be detained, and introduces a one-year prison sentence for entering France illegally.”
In 2022, France reversed its pledge to curb its climate emissions by allowing coal plants to increase their production. Instead of the 700 hours they would be allowed to operate, they could operate 1,000 hours. France also uses nuclear energy, which is similarly hated by the left.
Tokyo Disney
If Disney’s LGBTQ+ leaders are concerned enough about Florida to meet with the CEO and make demands, they must really be pushing to stop all business in Japan. Compared to the United States, Japan is a hellscape.
In Japan, gay marriage is illegal, same-sex couples can’t adopt children, and there is no protection for anti-LGBT discrimination. To legally change your gender on state forms, you must be over 20 years old, unmarried, have no children under the age of 20, and have reassignment surgery and be sterilized. When this was upheld by court ruling in 2019, there were no demands from Disney LGBTQ+ leadership, no angry walkouts from Disney employees.
Japan is one of 11 countries that requires the father’s consent for an abortion. Abortion is limited to 22 weeks, making third trimester abortions illegal. When it comes to sustainability, Climate Action Tracker rated Japan’s climate targets as “Poor” and their financing to prevent climate change as “critically insufficient.”
In terms of the highly coveted diversity category, in 2013 Japan was called “the most homogenous” on par with North Korea. There is little racial diversity in the populace, and none in government leadership.
Disneyland California
It’s not just the foreign countries that fail the leftist litmus test. If Disney were truly honest, they would also pull out of California. California has failed over and over again to pass truly progressive legislation. California does not have universal healthcare. California did not extend the eviction moratorium placed during COVID. California did not pass bills backed by Black Lives Matter, one of which would have allowed an independent commission to review and remove police officers.
That’s not all. According to The Guardian, in the 2020 elections, California voters “sided with corporations on the future of gig work, decided against affirmative action, and nixed both stronger rent control and a new business tax that benefits schools and local governments.” These are standard policies that leftists adore, yet California is sorely lacking.
So it’s time for Disney to put its money where its mouth is. If they want to bow to the leftist agenda, they should close not only resort locations in Florida, but also those in France, Tokyo, and California. It should also not harbor at any of its cruise destinations, as every one of them violates progressive ideals. Alternatively, it could not get rid of this latest acquisition, because it’s just not worth the investment.
Moshe Hill is a senior fellow at Amariah, an America First Zionist organization. His work can be found on his blog, www.aHillwithaView.com. You can follow him on Twitter @TheMoHill and on Facebook @aHillwithaView.
