Disney is facing a major civil rights lawsuit over claims that it has discriminated against various racial, sexual, and religious groups.
America First Legal (AFL) announced this week it was filing a claim against the Walt Disney Company for violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 through a variety of illegal and discriminatory practices.
The organization announced in a press release:
The law prohibits Disney from using race, color, religion, sex, or national origin merely as a motivating factor for hiring, training, or promotions. But a document on Disney’s “Reimagine Tomorrow” website strongly suggests that race, color, religion, sex, or national origin are often the only motivating factor in Disney’s hiring, training, and promotion decisions and that the company is intentionally discriminating against white American men, Christians, and Jews simply because of their race, sex, religion, and citizenship.
The lawsuit will cite numerous examples of Disney’s discriminatory practices, including its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) program which requires 50 percent of many jobs must be filled by individuals from supposedly “underrepresented groups.”
/1🚨BREAKING — Following the disclosure of damning internal company documents, AFL has filed a formal EEOC complaint against @Disney alleging pervasive illegal discrimination based on race and sex.
THREAD: pic.twitter.com/LeI5ZOW3dq
— America First Legal (@America1stLegal) February 14, 2024
AFL was founded by former Trump adviser Stephen Miller, who said on filing the lawsuit that it was “sad and tragic” how Disney had become such a divisive political institution:
Disney appears to be engaged in pervasive, far-reaching, and illegal race and sex discrimination in violation of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Accordingly, we have filed a formal complaint with the EEOC that Disney is engaged in illegal conduct. It is sad and tragic that a company whose name was once synonymous with wholesome and charming childhood fantasies is now dedicated to spreading divisive bigotry. We urge Disney to cease and desist its unlawful and destructive conduct at once.
Although the strength of the complaint is yet to be seen, the lawsuit represents another headache for Disney CEO Bob Iger, who is spearheading efforts to turn its fortunes around and mitigate the damage caused by former CEO Bob Chapek’s commitment to engaging the company in left-wing and progressive activism.
Yet this lawsuit is far from the only legal issue Disney is facing. Last week, the former The Mandalorian actress Gina Carano filed a similar action against the company for wrongful termination and discrimination, all with the backing of billionaire mogul Elon Musk.
Today is an important day for me–I am filing a lawsuit against @lucasfilm & @Disney
After my 20 years of building a career from scratch, and during the regime of former Disney CEO Bob Chapek, Lucasfilm made this statement on Twitter, terminating me from The Mandalorian: “Gina…
— Gina Carano 🕯 (@ginacarano) February 6, 2024
According to court documents, Disney “targeted, harassed, publicly humiliated, defamed, and went to great lengths to destroy Carano’s career” after she posted a tweet invoking the political persecution faced by Jews during the Holocaust.
“Disney bullied Ms Carano, trying to force her to conform to their views about cultural and political issues, and when that bullying failed, they fired her,” her lawyer stated. “Punishing employees for their speech on political or social issues is illegal under California law.”
