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Disney heir comes out as transgender, condemns Florida’s LGBTQ law

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HR King
May 29, 2001
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As Disney employees protested what they considered a delayed and lackluster response from the company to what critics call Florida’s “don’t say gay” bill, a Disney heir who recently came out as transgender watched in silence.

Now, Charlee Corra Disney, who uses they/them pronouns, is speaking out. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times published over the weekend, the 30-year-old high school science teacher said they regret not doing more to help.
“I don’t call senators or take action,” Charlee, whose great-grandfather was Disney co-founder Roy O. Disney, told the Times. “I felt like I could be doing more.”
Last month, at the Human Rights Campaign’s annual gala, Charlee and their family announced they would match up to $250,000 in donations to the nonprofit. Later, their parents, Sheri and Roy P. Disney, said they were upping the match to $500,000, according to the Times. The charity event served as a public coming-out for Charlee, the newspaper reported.


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“Equality matters deeply to us, especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community,” Roy wrote in an appeal to the HRC.
Florida’s law limiting LGBTQ discussion in schools, explained
Disney executives were under fire in recent months for not speaking out against the recently signed Florida law that bans discussions or lessons on LGBTQ issues in schools for children in kindergarten through third grade. Disney chief executive Bob Chapek remained silent about the proposed legislation as it neared the finish line.
In a memo to Disney employees on March 7, Chapek acknowledged that many workers were upset the company had not publicly condemned the legislation. He added that a statement from the company wouldn’t effect change and that such statements “are often weaponized by one side or the other to further divide and inflame,” The Washington Post reported.







“I do not want anyone to mistake a lack of a statement for a lack of support,” he added.
The following day, the state Senate passed the bill.
Chapek broke his silence publicly on March 9, saying during a shareholder meeting that Disney was “opposed to the bill from the outset, but we chose not to take a public position on it because we thought we could be more effective working behind the scenes, engaging directly with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle.”
“And we were hopeful that our long-standing relationships with those lawmakers would enable us to achieve a better outcome,” he added. “But, despite weeks of effort, we were ultimately unsuccessful.”

Chapek said the company was pledging $5 million to LGBTQ organizations, including the Human Rights Campaign. But in a news release that day, the nonprofit’s interim president, Joni Madison, criticized the company for staying silent for so long and said the HRC was refusing the donation “until we see [Disney] build on their public commitment and work with LGBTQ+ advocates to ensure that dangerous proposals … don’t become dangerous laws, and if they do, to work to get them off the books.”








Here’s the difference between sex and gender








The Equality Act is a positive step forward for the LGBTQ community. But it came with swift backlash from conservative lawmakers. (Video: Monica Rodman, Sarah Hashemi/The Washington Post, Photo: The Washington Post)
How Disney fell flat in fight over LGBTQ talk in Florida’s schools
On March 22, hundreds of Disney employees across the country walked out in protest of Chapek’s response. In Burbank, Calif., workers gathered outside the company’s office building holding signs and chanting, “Say gay!”


Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed the Parental Rights in Education bill into law on March 28.

Charlee, who first identified as gay before coming out as transgender four years ago, told the Times they won’t tolerate legislation that will cause more obstacles for LGBTQ children, who already suffer from high rates of anxiety, depression, bullying and suicide.
“Then to put something like this law on top of that? They can’t learn about their community and their history at school, or play sports or use the bathroom they want to use?” Charlee said.
Charlee’s mother, Sheri, said the family was disappointed with Disney’s extended silence as the bill passed through the state legislature. The $500,000 contribution to the HRC was a gesture proving her family advocates for LGBTQ rights, she told the Times, adding it’s also a reminder that children need their family’s support.
“I have a trans kid, and I love my kid no matter what,” she said.

 
I get a kick out of the pronoun thing. I would like my adjectives to be "handsome" anyone who is not willing to recognize My adjective is a bigot. Henceforth you must reference me as "handsome WDDT"
 
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The polling for Disney is not good. I saw something today that something like 68% of parents say they will look for alternative entertainment for the over kids due to Disney’s stance
I am shocked that parents don’t want alternative sexual cultures subliminally pushed on their kindergartners. What bigots!
 
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However, I'm not certain that an heir of Walt Disney who happens to be transgender is going to push the needle one way or the other in this conversation.

Both sides are being a little apoplectic which they like to do. There is no real need for the law because Republicans can't really name one place where any school has had a set of educational standards that is responsible for teaching kids about transgender at that age. Some have discussed what to do if kids come out about it to a teacher, but at that age it's really not that big of a deal. So the idea that there's this major grooming nonsense going on is just outrageous nonsense meant to rile up people and scare those who don't know any better and get them to the polls.

At the same time, the bill was written intentionally vague in a way that is meant to hopefully scare schools away from even acknowledging trans students in the least out of fear of lawsuits. It's vagueness is it's problem because it can and will be abused to sue schools or teachers where the conversation even comes up. Hire a trans teacher and let them be trans get sued, have a student ask a gay male teacher about their wife and have them say they're gay and have a husband instead they could get sued. So there is reason to be bothered by this bill. But like anything political, it's blown well out of proportion on both sides.
 
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Some of his workforce
Enough to get a bunch of chatter from the board about kicking Chapek out. He's already in hot water with the board over how he handled Covid and the disastrous Genie+ launch. Now this becomes a major story and many (Especially in HQ) got furious at the silence. He wasn't left with much of a choice if he wanted to keep his job. He's still taking about the smallest stance ever. All he's really said is we're against the bill.
 
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