Disney and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have long been arguing over an anti-gay law. Now the legal dispute has come to an end.
The sky clears in front of Cinderella Castle in Florida: mediation is in sight in the dispute between Ron DeSantis and Disney Photo: Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/AP
MIAMI afp | After a dispute between Disney and the ultraconservative governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis, over a law criticized as anti-gay, an agreement is emerging. The background is the legal dispute over the special status of the “Disney World” theme park in the US state.
“We are pleased to be able to conclude all legal proceedings in the courts of the state of Florida,” Jeff Vahle, head of entertainment giant Walt Disney World, said Wednesday. This will allow for greater investments and job creation.
Disney and DeSantis have had a bitter dispute since 2022. The trigger was the entertainment company's criticism of a controversial law that prohibited classes on sexual orientation and gender identity in elementary schools.
Critics condemn the law as anti-LGBTQ and call it the “Don't Say Gay” law. Then-Disney CEO Bob Chapek also criticized the law and stopped all political donations from his company in Florida.
Disney World is bigger than Paris
DeSantis then had the Florida legislature pass a law severely restricting the self-governing status of “Disney World.” Until then, the status had granted him numerous privileges.
The agreement with the responsible authority paves the way for a future agreement on the management of the site by both parties. This puts an end to litigation at the state level, although both parties are also resolving their conflict in federal courts. However, after the deal was announced on Wednesday, Disney requested that negotiations be put on hold until further discussions took place.
Disney's previous self-governance law concerned the so-called Reedy Creek Improvement District. This district of approximately one hundred square kilometers was created by the Florida legislature in 1967 to facilitate the construction of the world-famous Orlando amusement park.
The Disney World theme park near Orlando covers an area of 11,000 hectares, making it larger than the city of Paris.
DeSantis is taking a right turn
Disney governed the district, collected taxes, and was responsible for basic services for citizens, such as garbage collection and wastewater recycling. Under the law passed by the Florida legislature, a newly created oversight body had the say there.
Republican Governor DeSantis is taking a markedly right-wing tack in Florida, attacking, among other things, an alleged “woke” leftist ideology among Democrats, institutions and businesses.