It’s not exactly news thatPixaremployees have been unhappy (to say the least) when it comes to their mother companyDisney’s decisions regarding a series of issues. Earlier this year, the team that brought us films likeToy StoryandFinding Nemodidn’t hold back to express their disappointment when the Mickey Mouse company decided to pull their latest animated filmTurning Redfrom a theatrical release, giving it a Disney+ premiere instead. Now, however, the Pixar team revealed in an official letter shared withJudd Legume, that creative decisions have angered them on a much deeper level.
This week, after being criticized for staying mum as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill was passed in both the Florida House and Senate, Disney CEOBob Chapekwas pressured into releasing a statement and a company-wide memo, since many of the company’s LGBTQIA+’s employees are directly affected by the bill — which seeks to limit what can be taught in classrooms regarding gender and sexual orientation. In the memo, Chapek stated that the “biggest impact” the company can make “in creating a more inclusive world is through the inspiring content we produce,” and pledged a $5 million donation to theHuman Rights Campaignand other organizations.
HRC, however, rejected Disney’s donation after stating that they cannot accept it “until we see them build on their public commitment and work with LGBTQ+ advocates to ensure that dangerous proposals, like Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay or Trans’ bill, don’t become dangerous laws.” Now, in an open letter signed by the whole LGBTQIA+ team from Pixar and their allies, the employees emphasize that Disney has a long history of not putting their money where their mouth is – and this still happens when it comes to Pixar stories.
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In the letter, the team reveals that they are “disappointed, hurt, afraid, and angry,” mainly with Disney’s financial involvement with legislators behind the “Don’t Say Gay” bill – the company allegedly tried to play both sides of the issue so as not to make any of the parts angry – and stated that they expected Disney to show up for its LGBTQIA+ employees, and it didn’t.
The letter also shot down Chapek’s statement that they can make the biggest impact on society through the content they produce by revealing that several Pixar pitches and scripts that featured LGBTQIA+ elements were systematically rejected. The letter states:
“Monday’s email, ‘Our Unwavering Commitment to the LGBTQ+ Community’, rang hollow. It began with the claim that Disney has a long history of supporting the LGBT community, but Disney Parks did not officially host Pride until 2019, in Paris alone. Disney has a history of shutting down fan-created Pride events in the parks […] We at Pixar have personally witnessed beautiful stories, full of diverse characters, come back from Disney corporate reviews shaved down to crumbs of what they once were. Nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney’s behest, regardless of when there is protest from both the creative teams and executive leadership at Pixar. Even if creating LGBTQIA+ content was the answer to fixing the discriminatory legislation in the world, we are being barred from creating it. Beyond the ‘inspiring content’ that we aren’t even allowed to create, we require action.”
Pixar has a history of trying to bring LGBTQIA+ voices into their mainstream movies, but so far these characters have been only in the background and their sexuality is mostly implied and never stated. The letter makes clear that this didn’t happen from lack of trying. As we could imagine, this is done in order not to make audiences “angry” with the content that is being fed to their children. The problem is that shutting down and erasing these stories is silencing the very voices of LGBTQIA+ families that produce the content inside dozens of production companies. It’s no secret that huge companies capitalize and promote themselves by declaring their support for minorities, but, like many other companies before it, it seems like Disney is not willing to take real action when it comes to taking a stand that might hurt its profit.
You can read the full letter below:
A Statement to Leadership from the LGBTQIA+ Employees of Pixar & Their AlliesWe are writing because we are disappointed, hurt, afraid, and angry. In regards to Disney’s financial involvement with legislators behind the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, we hoped that our company would show up for us. But it didn’t.Monday’s email, “Our Unwavering Commitment to the LGBTQ+ Community”, rang hollow. It began with the claim that Disney has a long history of supporting the LGBT community, but Disney Parks did not officially host Pride until 2019, in Paris alone. Disney has a history of shutting down fan-created Pride events in the parks, even removing same-sex couples for dancing together in the 1980’s. Additionally, Disney began capitalizing on Pride in 2018 with The Rainbow Mickey Collection, (while de-emphasizing the terms like LGBTQ+ and not even featuring explicitly LGBTQIA+ pieces such as Pride flag pins until 2021). To this end, it feels terrible to be a part of a company that makes money from Pride merch when it chooses to “step back” in times of our greatest need, when our rights are at risk.The second claim stated that “corporate statements do very little to change outcomes or minds”. However, the very email making this claim opened with a corporate statement regarding the ongoing situation in Ukraine. Eight days after Russia invaded Ukraine, Disney paused the release of theatrical films in Russia and announced “We will make future business decisions based on the evolving situation.” Following the siege on the capital in 2021, Disney stopped all political donations to members of Congress who had objected to the presidential election results. In 2016, Disney told the state of Georgia: “We will plan to take our business elsewhere should any legislation allowing discriminatory practices be signed into state law” in response to the controversial Religious Liberty bill. By taking a stand, Disney directly affected the legislative outcome in Georgia. It has been proven that Disney’s corporate statements can and do make a difference.Finally, we come to the push for Content as the answer. We at Pixar have personally witnessed beautiful stories, full of diverse characters, come back from Disney corporate reviews shaved down to crumbs of what they once were. Nearly every moment of overtly gay affection is cut at Disney’s behest, regardless of when there is protest from both the creative teams and executive leadership at Pixar. Even if creating LGBTQIA+ content was the answer to fixing the discriminatory legislation in the world, we are being barred from creating it. Beyond the “inspiring content” that we aren’t even allowed to create, we require action.We are calling on Disney leadership to immediately withdraw all financial support from the legislators behind the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, to fully denounce this legislation publicly, and to make amends for their financial involvement. While signing on to donate to the HRC is a step in the correct direction, the shareholder meeting on Wednesday made it clear that this is not enough. Throughout the shareholder meeting, Disney did not take a hard stance in support of the LGBTQIA+ community, they instead attempted to placate “both sides” – and did not condemn hateful messages shared during the question and answer portion of the meeting. This is not what it means to “unequivocally stand in support of our LGBTQ+ employees, their families, and their communities.”Disney taking a stand by honoring their company values has changed the course of legislation in the past. If Disney is true in its values, it will take a decisive public stand against the discriminatory legislation occurring in Florida and offer tangible support for the LGBTQIA+ communities affected by bigoted legislation sweeping the country. Stand against this bill in Florida and against the similar bills in South Carolina, Arizona, Virginia, and Tennessee. Stand against the transphobic legislation in Texas, Iowa, Utah, Kansas, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, and Alabama. Many hateful groups are attempting to eradicate us through legislation – we need you to stand with us entirely, not in empty words.This matter is not something that can wait until Reimagine Tomorrow in April, or Pride Month in June. This matter needs to be addressed now. This is urgent. 42% of LGBTQIA+ youth seriously considered suicide in 2021, including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth, with a large factor being the lack of support that these discriminatory legislations enable. Disney claims to care for the welfare of children, but supporting politicians like this directly hurts one of their most vulnerable audiences. There are lives at stake and Disney’s support could save those lives. “We still have more work to do,” your email said. This is that work.Signed with Pride,The LGBTQIA+ employees of Pixar, and their allies
