Disney filed a lawsuit against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, denouncing the fact that his government had taken control of the Orlando theme park as part of “a campaign of political retaliation” by the state executive. The war between the governor, named as a possible rival to Donald Trump in the race for the Republican nomination for the 2024 US presidential election, and the entertainment giant began when Disney opposed a law banning the teaching of subjects related to sexual orientation and gender identity in Florida schools.
The lawsuit is the latest installment in this battle between DeSantis and Disney, which the governor has assured is a business “woke up— an accusation that hopes to please his more right-wing supporters.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Florida, is against DeSantis and other members of his administration. “A selective government retaliatory campaign — orchestrated at every turn by Governor DeSantis as punishment for Disney’s speech — now threatens Disney’s business operations, jeopardizes its economic future in the region and violates its constitutional rights,” it read. .
“We are not aware of any legal right a company has to act above its own government or to maintain special privileges that other companies in the state do not have,” DeSantis spokeswoman Taryn Fenske said. “This lawsuit is another sad example of the hope they have of suppressing the will of Florida voters and operating outside the margins of the law,” he defended.
Disney angered the governor last year after it criticized a law that banned public schools from teaching topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity. After initially remaining silent on the issue, Disney was pressured by its employees and eventually pledged to fight against the “Don’t Say Gay” law, which activists say stigmatizes LGBTQ youth.
In February, DeSantis appointed a board to run a special district assigned to Disney by authorities in 1960 at the Orlando theme park, which the company operated as a local government. And it has considered raising taxes on the company, imposing safety inspections or building a prison next to the theme park – all measures seen as punishment.
The lawsuit filed by Disney, which employs more than 75,000 people in the state of Florida, comes after the DeSantis-designated board on Feb. 26 nullified the agreements signed by the company before it relinquished control of the special district. stated.
With this move, Disney ensured that it did not need board approval to construct buildings in the district or grant area rights, in addition to prohibiting new managers from using the company’s name or its characters.
The documents contained a clause guaranteeing their validity until “21 years after the death of the last survivor of the descendants of King Charles III” of England.
DeSantis, the new rising star of the American right at age 44, has become known for his cultural battle against politicians, teachers and corporations like Disney, which he accuses of trying to force a progressive ideology on others.
In the lawsuit, the entertainment giant is requesting that the decisions that removed control of the special district be banned, claiming that “they were made in retaliation for Disney’s political speech in violation of the First Amendment,” which protects free speech. “The company has no choice but to file this action to protect its members, customers and local partners from a relentless campaign to use government power as a weapon against Disney,” the company said in the lawsuit. “In the United States, the government cannot punish us for saying what we think,” he added.
Disney has announced plans to invest more than $17 billion in Disney World over the next decade, a move predicted to create more than 10,000 new jobs and attract even more tourists to Florida.
Orlando’s Disney theme park attracts 50 million visitors annually, bringing billions of dollars into the state’s economy after paying $1.1 billion in taxes last year.
Source: DN
