This Business
Sucks

Disney took a vocal stance against Florida’s hateful “Don’t Say Gay” Bill, which stands to alienate, disenfranchise and perpetuate discrimination against LGBTQ+ youth in the Sunshine State. But this doesn’t mean that the creator of the most famous mouse in the world deserves unfettered praise. Like other larger-than-life American companies, Disney has created its fair share of problems.

Disney has a long history of unpopular policies designed to protect the bottom line. It regularly censors even the most subtle mention of same-sex relationships for the conservative audiences in Russia and the Middle East, and has minimized black actors’ space in promotional posters in China to align itself with the country’s anti-Black sentiments.

And although it finally started listening to public outcry and refused to cut the lesbian couple from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Pixar (a subsidiary of Disney) artists report this is the exception, not the rule. Apparently, it’s like pulling teeth trying to get Disney to approve diverse characters and storylines in its movies.

Disney deserves a participation trophy, not a standing ovation. As the owner of some of the biggest pop culture franchises of our generation, it should buy Disney.Sucks to show its commitment to leading the charge in diversity, inclusion and acceptance—or face the consequences of losing an audience that is continually expecting more from the brands they support.