Florida's DeSantis, Disney butt heads over LGBTQ school bill
ABC News
Walt Disney Co. is suspending its political donations in Florida
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Walt Disney Co. is suspending its political donations in Florida after the company’s CEO received huge blowback for not using Disney's vast influence in the state to try to quash a recently passed Republican bill that would prevent teachers from instructing early grades on LGBTQ issues.
The bill has sparked a spat between Florida's tourism giant and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis, who accused the company of being friendly with communist China.
Disney CEO Bob Chapek on Friday afternoon posted a statement online and sent an email to employees saying the company was wrong to stay silent on the issue before the Republican-dominated Legislature passed what opponents have dubbed the “Don't Say Gay” bill.
Republican lawmakers had argued that parents, not teachers, should be the ones talking to their children about gender issues during their early formative years. The bill bars instruction on “sexual orientation or gender identity” in kindergarten through grade 3.
