Annual LGBT Celebration at Disney World Helps Debunk 'Don't Say Gay' Lies About Florida

"Gay Days" at DisneyWorld – an annual tradition for years – just occurred as usual this year, kicking off Pride Month. Of course it did. People gathered to celebrate something that matters to them, of their own volition, in a free state, in a free country. Many attendees even wore articles of clothing criticizing the state's supposedly "fascist" governor, which was, of course, also allowed.

Again: It's a free state in a free country. There's really nothing genuinely newsworthy about this headline, or some of the details reported in the accompanying story. But it's nonetheless illustrative of several realities that need to be highlighted further:

Disney ‘Gay Days’ events go ahead in defiance of DeSantis’ ‘Don’t Say Gay’ laws https://t.co/R5mpK1Rc4L pic.twitter.com/h2nLO3NvdE
— New York Post (@nypost) June 5, 2023

Tens of thousands of people flocked to “Gay Days” events at Disney in defiance of the theme park’s legal row with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and his so-called “Don’t Say Gay” legal crackdown. A sea of red shirts — many emblazoned with “Say Gay” or “Don’t say DeSantis” — descended on Orlando from Saturday for the half-week of pool parties, rides and drag bingo to mark the start of Pride Month. It was a clear stand against presidential nominee DeSantis, whose legislation and legal feud with Disney sparked LGBTQ+ rights organizations to issue travel warnings on the Sunshine State...reservations at the hotel hosting the event were slower than normal, although all 1,001 rooms were eventually booked. Others have called ahead to make sure they won’t be arrested for attending events, especially drag shows after a law threatening harsh punishments if children attend “adult live performances.”

(1) "Don't Say Gay" is not real. It's a made-up lie invented by activists and dutifully repeated by many in the "news" media. Nowhere is it illegal to say "gay" in the state of Florida, including elementary schools. The actual legislation given that moniker by leftists barred classroom instruction on sexual and gender identity for K-3 students. Despite the dishonest, hysterical framing, the bill (now law) attracted broad support among Floridians. The law was eventually expanded to include grades 4-12, applying age appropriateness standards and exempting health and sex ed classes. According to the language, the rule applies "unless such instruction is either expressly required by state academic standards...or is part of a reproductive health course or health lesson for which a student's parent has the option to have his or her student not attend." Even if you object to some or all of this, and I've offered my own nuanced thoughts (including in questions to the governor himself), "Don't Say Gay" is a flagrantly false premise.

(2) This tradition moved forward without incident because some of the preposterous claims about what's happening in Florida have never been remotely true. Yes, that entails drag performances, which have continued to happen with great frequency across Florida. Drag shows are not banned. Not even close. Subjecting underage children to sexual shows is. Might that latter component be somewhat subjective in nature, potentially leading to overreach? I'm absolutely open to that possibility, as well as a discussion around ensuring that nobody faces legal consequences for hosting, say, family-friendly drag shows (some people may see this as a contradiction, but parents have wide leeway to raise their children as they see fit, as it should be). The fact that some attendees supposedly called ahead, fearful that they might be arrested for attending Pride events at Disney, underscores how insane the misinformation has gotten. Don't indoctrinate young children with sexual and gender ideology, and don't put on sexual shows in their presence. That's what Florida requires. Aside from that, have at it, consenting adults.

(3) The performative "travel advisories" issued against Florida from various left-wing groups aren't being taken seriously. They shouldn't be. They're a ridiculous joke. The venue sold out, as usual, and the festivities took place, albeit without DeSantis accepting one organizer's invitation to attend. To the extent that sign-ups were slower than normal, that would only have worried Disney, whose side these people have ostentatiously taken. In case you missed it, I'll leave you with this: