Disney’s ‘inclusion standards’ spark outrage after Elon Musk post: ‘Institutionalized racism’
BURBANK, Calif. – Billionaire tech entrepreneur Elon Musk blasted out a document from inside the Walt Disney Company detailing its “inclusion standards” Tuesday evening, which he said is evidence of “institutionalized racism and sexism.”
The internal document includes standards listed from “A” to “D,” which detail a variety of requirements for Disney’s content, such as requiring at least a majority of “regular and recurring written characters come from Underrepresented Groups.”
Disney has been incorporating characters of “minority” or “oppressed” groups in their TV shows, movies and attractions in recent years in an effort to be more “inclusive.”
The company also recently spatted with Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida, with lawsuits ongoing, sparked by its opposition to parental rights legislation that limits the discussion of gender identity and sexual orientation in public schools.
Disney’s state case rages on after DeSantis’ federal legal victory: timeline
The bottom of the document clarifies that candidates cannot be asked their “actual perceived race, religion, color,” or other societal statuses.
While Standard A focuses on ensuring the “on screen” aspect of Disney’s entertainment includes “underrepresented groups,” Standard B ensures that producers, staff and other personnel are from underrepresented groups.
Standards C and D also deal with “other key roles” in Disney being composed of underrepresented groups, including a majority of line producer/department heads, majority of “overall crew or project staff,” a majority of episodic directors, among other categories.
For each standard to be met, a certain number of the categories must be fulfilled.
For example, for Standard A to be met, at least three of the five “areas” regarding underrepresented groups must be fulfilled.
“Disney sucks,” Musk said Wednesday afternoon, in response to the company reportedly considering a replacement for Johnny Depp in the next Pirates of the Caribbean movie being a Black woman.
Musk also announced that anyone who was “discriminated” against by Disney, ABC, ESPN, Marvel or other subsidiaries can reply to his post for “legal support.”
