Disgust over Disney 'Gay Day'

by Ken Walker                                                                                    Vol. IX, No. 8, September 1996

[The resolution of alarm at the anti-family policies of the Disney Company passed by the Southern Baptist Convention this past June may have caught some Southern Baptists by surprise. The following Baptist Press article provides some helpful background to those of us who are not personally familiar with or who have not thought through the implications of many Disney policies and products.}

           After 15 visits to Walt Disney World, Kim Jones won't be returning. The Sarasota, Fla., woman plans to boycott the Magic Kingdom after her experience at this year's "Gay and Lesbian Day" June 1. Not only did many lesbians make suggestive remarks to her and her mature-looking, 10-year-old niece, homosexual men were whistling at her fiancé and yelling crude remarks at him, said Jones, who attends Bay Haven Baptist Church in Sarasota.

           "It's disgraceful," she said.

           Jones said the most embarrassing incident was taking one of her two daughters into a rest room and seeing two men dressed in skirts entering the stalls. It was obvious they were males because of their hairy legs, she said, and two more were coming in as she and her daughter exited the rest room. Outside, many other men were wearing skirts, skin-tight tights or muscle shirts with long fingernails and long hair, while the majority of the "Gay Day" participants wore red T-shirts -- the "uniform" for homosexuals, Jones said.

           She also was offended by obvious cocaine snorting by homosexuals in front of and behind them as they waited in ride lines, Jones said. After several hours they had seen enough. "We didn't complain, we just left," she said.

           Jones isn't alone in her disgust. Ray Henry, pastor of Belvedere Baptist Church in West Palm Beach, said a couple from his church meets out-of-state relatives for a three-day family reunion at Disney World yearly, but they left early this year because of "Gay Day." This happened before the family was even aware that Southern Baptists were going to consider a boycott, he said, referring to the resolution adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in June threatening a boycott if the Walt Disney Company continues in an anti-family direction.

           "Once people stumble upon these things, you're going to have an automatic boycott," Henry said. "They're not going to let their kids stand in line with gays flaunting their homosexuality. They're going to leave without any SBC resolution. "

           "What (Disney) is doing now is offending people," Henry said. "They're having these days and people are leaving. They can jump on Southern Baptists, but we may be helping them out -- they may need to adjust what they're doing."

           The outrage extended beyond Florida's borders, too. Four weeks after "Gay Day," a Pennsylvania woman wrote to Disney officials to complain, sending a copy of her letter to the SBC Executive Committee. Joyce McCoury of Spring Grove, Pa., said she and her husband, Richard, had long awaited a visit to Disney World and were upset there were no signs warning them of "Gay Day." She said she felt her civil rights were violated by having to see some of the things they did and not having a choice to return another day.

           "The displays of affection and some of the things we witnessed were appalling to us," McCoury wrote. "There were other people who had children and some of the comments we heard were very upsetting. People were very disgusted that their children had to be subjected to such behavior."

           A number of Orlando residents have no enthusiasm for "Gay Day," which may be expanded next year. It's being publicized on the copyrighted "Gay Day" home page on the Internet for June 5-9, 1997. The week after this year's event, the Orlando Sentinel-Star tourism columnist wrote that sponsors hope to turn it into a three-day celebration including Universal Studios and Sea World.

           That prospect bothers Barbara Williams, who chairs the current issues committee of Orlando's First Baptist Church. "What we're troubled about is they're going to advertise in foreign magazines and call Orlando the gay and lesbian vacation spot," Williams said.

           However, Williams doesn't plan to begin boycotting the amusement park because of "Gay Day" -- she said she started a long time ago because of Disney-subsidiary movies, such as Miramax's R-rated "Priest," "Kids" and "Pulp Fiction," as well as mysticism and New Age material in its Epcot Center exhibits. "They have a lot of good things, too," Williams said, "American exhibits and other things. But I think the bad overcomes that, especially the movies they've gone into."