By Hannah Lee 
On Wednesday, April 26th 2023, Walt Disney Co. sued Florida’s governor Ron Desantis, alleging that he had pursued a“relentless campaign to weaponize government power.” This feud between Florida’s Governor and the mass entertainment company started nearly a year ago after Disney spoke out against Desantis’ “Don’t Say Gay” bill which limited discourse on sexual orientations in classrooms. Disney spoke out claiming it would attempt to have the bill struck down in the courts. The company said, “Florida’s HB 1557, also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, should never have passed and should never have been signed into law.”
The expected top contender for the Republican party in the 2024 election swiftly responded by stripping Disney of its self-governing status in April 2022. In doing so, the nearby counties of Orange and Osceola may be obligated to foot the cost of taxes for maintaining the roads and providing services like the resort’s own fire department. In addition, the district owed a colossal $1 billion in debt. In stripping Disney of its tax privileges, local governments could be forced to raise taxes on property owners and small businesses in order to pay for what Disney used to fund. This hurts local businesses and property owners and many owners have been pleading with the Reedy Creek board to end the feud, claiming they can’t afford higher taxes.
In retaliation to Desantis’ attempt to grab power over the company, but Disney outmaneuvered the Governor by striking a deal with the newly appointed Reedy Creek board members that allows a Disney subsidiary to set its own utility rates until 2032, long after Ron Desantis would be out of office. In response to this, Desantis suggested putting a prison next to Disney or taxing Disney’s hotels and resorts.
This lawsuit was swiftly filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida minutes after the Reedy Creek board voted to strip Disney of its special tax privileges. The lawsuit alleges that Desantis “orchestrated at every step” a political retaliation in order to punish Disney for its use of free speech. Disney’s CEO Bob Iger told shareholders that “the company has a right to freedom of speech just like individuals do.”
This lawsuit is just the newest development in this year-long political standoff between Disney and Desantis. In recent months the intensity of their brawling has heightened and dire economic and political consequences may be afoot.