Ron DeSantis Called Out Amid His Battle With Disney

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis suffered another blow in his battle with Disney, this time with thousands of people turning out for its first "Pride Nite."

The media and theme park giant has gone head to head with the governor over his "Don't Say Gay Bill," and also attempted to become more inclusive with diverse characters in its film and TV shows.

DeSantis responded by trying to strip Disney of its special rights status on the land where Disney World Orlando sits.

But the 2024 Republican presidential nominee hopeful has so far been no match for Disney, which has legally outmaneuvered him at every stage, and the latest blow comes with an unapologetic celebration of the LGBTQ+ community at Disneyland, California.

The Anaheim theme park hosted the first ever Disneyland After Dark: Pride Nite on June 13 and 15.

The special ticketed event was a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community and saw thousands of people turn up to the night-long party.

One Twitter user captured the festivities in a video that has been viewed more than 309,500 times and had a clear message for DeSantis.

"Don't DeSantis My Democracy. Kudos to Disney@Disney for a fantabulous Pride Night! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️," the tweet caption read.

Other people in the replies agreed with the original post and described how much fun they'd had at the event.

"We were at Disneyland yesterday and today they have the cutest merchandise right now for pride ❤️all I see is ppl having a great time!" replied one person.

Another added: "Went to dinner at one of the hotels last night n it was wonderful to see it so packed, Pride everywhere. Restaurants were all packed too, Disney was definitely a whole vibe though 💞"

And a third wrote: "Walt Disney World has always been my happy place, and this brings such a smile to my face! 💕 Looks like everyone was having an amazing time. I'll second that kudos to Disney! Happy Pride! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️."

DeSantis' beef with Disney seemingly began when the multinational spoke out against his 2022 "Don't Say Gay Bill," which bans the discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in certain grades at Florida schools.

In what was seen as a retaliatory move, the governor then attempted to strip Disney of social privileges and tax breaks protected under the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which had allowed the company to essentially run as its own self-governing authority in Florida for more than 50 years.

But Disney outsmarted him when it was revealed it had signed a deal with the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District handpicked five-person board that was meant to replace Reedy Creek. But the deal signed in February restricts the new board's powers and essentially allows Disney to remain self-governing.

Then in May, Disney announced it had shelved a plan to build a $1 billion corporate campus in central Florida because of "considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project," costing about 2,000 new jobs in the state.

As if that wasn't enough, Disney has also sued DeSantis and accused him of attempting to punish the company over its opposition to the "Don't Say Gay" bill, arguing the move violated its First Amendment rights.