Upcoming rollercoasters Guardians of the Galaxy and Tron are just two projects in development at Disney World that could be delayed if employees protesting the company’s response to Florida’s “Don’t Say You’re Gay” bill achieve his.
The protesters asked the company to stop donating to politicians involved in passing the bill, such as Gov. Ron DeSantis.
They also want Disney to stop all “construction and investment in the State of Florida” until the bill is repealed.
The law, expected to take effect in July, will ban lessons on sexuality, gender identity and sexual orientation “in an age-inappropriate manner.” Critics say open language, which also discourages “classroom discussion,” will prevent children from trusting teachers if they feel insecure about their identity.
Disney employees urged Disney not to take a more assertive stance on the legislation. On Monday, CEO Bob Chapek said he regrets not speaking out against the bill earlier and vowed to convene a task force to create more LGBTQ content for children.
But on Tuesday, employees still took part in a company-wide strike. About 60 employees gathered in a park outside of Los Angeles, Reuters reported, and dozens of other employees quit their jobs at the company’s Burbank studio.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Space Rewind is set to open this summer at EPCOT Disney World, according to Disney. The Tron Lightcycle/Run does not yet have an opening date, though the park says it has already begun testing the vehicles on the tracks.
Guardians of the Galaxy: Space Rewind is set to open this summer at EPCOT Disney World near Orlando, Florida.
The planned Tron Lightcycle/Run ride doesn’t yet have an opening date, but the company says the vehicles are currently being tested. It should open in the magical kingdom of Tomorrowland.
Dozens of employees marched outside Disney’s Burbank, California headquarters on Tuesday as part of a full day of strikes at theme parks and company offices to protest the company’s slow response to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law.
Protest organizers are calling for a halt to “construction and investment in the state of Florida until the hateful legislation is repealed.”
Cosmic Rewind will be the first reverse launch roller coaster in Disney history. He will also change racers in their cars as they race around the track.
According to the company, Guardians of the Galaxy: Space Rewind is a family-friendly adventure that features a brand new roller coaster experience that we’re designing specifically for this attraction – it’s a story coaster that rotates 360 degrees so you’re always focused on in all activities as you help the Guardians save the galaxy.”
According to the Disney theme park blog Inside the Magic, the semi-enclosed Tron ride is a version of the Lightcycle Power Run that opened in 2016 at Shanghai Disneyland.
It will work in the Tomorrowland Magic Kingdom section.
“This coaster-style ride will allow riders to board a train of two-wheeled Lightcycle motorcycles and go on an exciting race across the digital frontier,” the company said in a statement.
The ride was first announced in 2017 and construction began in 2018, although it was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Inside the Magic reports.
Both roller coasters are based on the films of the same name. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, starring Chris Pratt and Zoe Saldana, will hit theaters in 2023.
Along with the two roller coasters, recent building permits filed by Disney indicate that New Horizon Construction Services will be building more projects on Magic Kingdom Drive.
Disney CEO Bob Chapek told employees during a virtual town hall that he regrets not taking a public stand against Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill and that the company will form a task force to focus on more LGBTQ content.
Disney has reportedly reinstated the gay kiss in its upcoming Toy Story spin-off amid criticism. Hawthorne (voiced by Uzo Aduba), a character in the film Lightyear, has a relationship with another female character in the film.
It is not clear what these projects will be, although the listed addresses are used by Gaston’s Tavern and Be Our Guest eateries in the parks.
Disney, who are protesting the company’s response to Florida’s “Don’t Tell Gays” law, are calling for a halt to construction and investment until the bill is repealed.
In a March 11 statement, CEO Bob Chapek said Disney needed to use its influence to “push” inclusive stories and added that the company would “fight similar legislation in other states.”
Moving on Monday, Chapek said Disney will convene a task force led by chief executive Paul Roeder and Disney Parks head of marketing Lisa Beckett. The task force will be responsible for ensuring that more LGBTQ-related content is available to children.
Reports surfaced last week that Disney was restoring a kiss scene between two women in the upcoming Toy Story spin-off Lightyear after Pixar staff accused the parent company of cutting gay characters from the films.
This month, Pixar employees released an open letter stating that “nearly every moment of explicit homosexual affection is cut at the direction of Disney, regardless of when there is protest from both the creative teams and Pixar’s executive management.”
Since then, protests and strikes have been accumulating within the company.
On Tuesday, dozens of employees marched outside Disney’s headquarters in Burbank, Calif., chanting “Say gay!” as part of a whole day of walking around theme parks and company offices.
Disney employee Tiffany Cooper holds a banner to protest the company’s stance on LGBTQ issues in Glendale, California on Tuesday.
Employees gathered in Griffith Park held signs reading “#DisneySayTrans” and “Disney Opposes Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Bill.”
Disney employee Nicholas Maldonado holds a sign during a protest outside Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida on Tuesday.
Others gathered in a park in Glendale with signs reading “#DisneySayTrans” and “Disney Opposes Florida’s Don’t Say Gay Bill.”
Outside the Walt Disney World property near Orlando on Tuesday, Disney employee Nicholas Maldonado was a lone protester wearing a rainbow flag and holding a sign that reads “Transgender rights are human rights” and “#DisneyDoBetter.”
– Where was Capek when the bill was introduced? said Maldonado, who had a day off work at a Disney store in Orlando, and while he was disappointed with Czapek’s initial response, he said he feels that Disney executives are beginning to listen to the concerns of the company’s employees.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Disney wrote that the company opposes “any legislation that violates fundamental human rights” and is “in solidarity” with LGBTQ employees, “whose voice is heard today and every day.”
Half a dozen Disney employees gathered Tuesday morning at the Orlando LGBTQ Center to write letters in support of queer students. ‘You are amazing. You matter and we care” and “It gets better,” they read next to the rainbow drawing.
“We’re creators and we felt like we could be creative and productive and write letters of support to LGBT youth,” said Gabe, product development manager for Walt Disney World, who didn’t want his last name to be used for fear that his confidentiality will be violated. invaded.
In Burbank, employees marched in front of the company’s studios.
“We had a great group here to show our support for our queer employees and their families,” said Norah Rogers, head of production at Walt Disney Animation Studios.