Although it may be a place of happy memories, Walt Disney World is not immune from controversy. Two recent topics covered by Mark Goldhaber, the timing of Disney’s “Year of a Million Dreams” sweepstakes and Gay Days, sparked some forceful responses from readers.
First, Mark responds to letters regarding his comments on Disney’s sweepstakes prize dates coinciding with Yom Kippur (link):
Brad writes:
Mark, in your recent column on June 12 for the Walt Disney World update, you wrote the following concerning the selection of dates for the “sweepstakes” prize: “Unfortunately, somebody in the marketing department did not look at their calendar, and nobody checking it up the line noticed the conflict. Or perhaps they noticed it but felt that sticking with the October 1 anniversary of the resort’s opening as the traditional date for the press event was more important that accommodating a religious minority of millions of people, 1.3 – 2 percent of the nation’s population depending on the source. In either case, the powers that be are now aware of the conflict, and we’ll let you know how they decide to handle it.”
Quite a scathing little piece, it seems. It almost seems as if it is approached from the standpoint that Disney is trying to be discriminatory against Jews, simply by making the dates coincide with a major Jewish holiday. You allude to a perceived “conflict” that the marketing department overlooked—what conflict? For it to be a conflict, that would have to mean that a Jewish person had actually already won the prize, but later stated that he/she couldn’t go because of religious reasons. None of which has happened yet, to my knowledge. For that matter, do you think that only the Jewish community is affected by these dates? What about people who have work schedules that will demand that they be at their jobs from October 1– 4? What about companies whose fiscal year-end is September 30, thus that 1st week of October is an extremely busy time for them and thus vacation is out of the question? What about doctors who are on call during those days, and wouldn’t be able to go? I myself, if I am so fortunate to win, would have a very difficult time being able to go during that time frame, as my kids are in school and my job is extremely busy during that time frame, having a fiscal 9/30 year end. And to tell you the truth, by having these dates, I don’t think that Disney is not “accommodating a religious minority of millions of people,” because Disney isn’t keeping them from coming to the parks, their religious beliefs might keep them from coming to the parks. It would be impossible for Disney to accommodate everyone with the dates, I am sure.
Lastly, I am against religious discrimination, to be perfectly clear. If it somehow surfaces factually that Disney chose these dates solely to discriminate against Jewish people, I’ll be the first to stand in line and cry foul. However, while I understand that your column didn’t accuse them of anything, per se, but only brought it to light, the fact that you felt so strongly about it so as to e-mail them and let them know about this perceived conflict almost makes it seem as if you already think they’re doing something they shouldn’t do. Should I e-mail them as well and say those dates aren’t good for me, can they please change them in case I win? I doubt it. Granted, I don’t represent 1.3– 2 million people, but none of those 1.3– 2 million people have won anything yet, either. I do enjoy reading your columns every week, and I hope you can continue to write them, albeit without feeling the need to “expose” Disney. You can please all the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time, but you can’t please all the people all of the time!
Stephen Perry writes:
I’m not sure how to address this e-mail without coming across as disrespectful. I understand and appreciate religious holidays, but the way you addressed the overlap of the new “Year of a Million” Dreams sweepstakes and Yom Kippur left a bad taste in my mouth. It came across as very “shame on Disney” and finger pointing as if they were intentionally discriminating with the dates they had selected. I’m sure it was just a simple oversight, in my humble opinion, yet you made it seem like they were up to no good. What will your reaction be if they don’t change the dates? Again, I can appreciate the observance of religious holidays, but to ask a company to change the dates of a sweepstakes seems very inappropriate and overly demanding to me. I’ve been a long time reader of the articles on MousePlanet and this is the first time an article came out that I felt had a very biased tone to it.
Ron Vining writes:
Chill out! I love your site, visit it weekly and enjoy your reports, links, etc… however, enough with the snide anti-Jew stuff.
People make errors and this looks like a clear case of some poor, low-level Disney PR person making one and who will now be looking for a new job.
Glad you noticed it, pointed it out to Disney, etc… now enough. Your writings are usually professional, but the snide remarks were not and only detracted from your keen observation.
Brad, Stephen and Ron,
I admit that I may have been a bit harsh on Disney in the column (perhaps harsher than I originally intended). However, I would not class this in the same category as excluding people who can’t get out of work on those dates. In this case, an entire class of people feels that they cannot even enter the sweepstakes because they would not be able to meet the terms of acceptance of the prize. I did not make this up; I received this from a number of people.
Personally, I entered the sweepstakes myself, figuring that I’d force the issue if I won. But the input from others caused me to respond at a higher level.
I’m certain that there was no intentional slight by Disney; however, Jewish holidays are noted on most calendars these days, and it seems difficult to believe that nobody at Disney caught it. Perhaps we hold Disney to a higher standard than we would other companies, but I would expect any major corporation to be aware of the possibility of treading on holy days.
In any case, I’ll await a response from Disney, and I will report it as fairly as I can.
Stephen Perry responds to Mark’s reply:
I appreciate the timely response to my e-mail. I hope that I didn’t come across as disrespectful or demeaning in anyway. I guess my main issue stems from the fact that because there is a “prize” involved is what people are making an issue about, I don’t remember an issue in the past when the start of the “Happiest Celebration” or “Millennium” celebrations started in the past on October 1. I to am interested to see how this will turn out and what either positive/negative reaction the outcome will generate.
If you had come across as disrespectful or demeaning, your chances of a response would have plummeted. As to the issue, without the prize involved, there was no real exclusion of people. When holidays conflicted with the Millennium and Happiest Celebrations, people could just go on other dates without missing the party. However, since there is a giveaway, and the actual date of receipt of the prize is fixed on a date that a specific group of people are prohibited from accepting said prize, it appears very unfair and very un-Disney-like.
As I said, I’m certain that it was not intentional, but they kind of painted themselves into the corner by not realizing what they were doing. Perhaps the people who checked the calendar did see the holiday, but did not realize the import of said holiday. I’m not familiar enough with the various Christian denominations, but I’m certain that there are certain sects that would not be pleased were Disney to have mandated that a prize be claimed on Easter Sunday. (Unless I’m mistaken about that day being the holiest of the year.) Whether it be unfamiliarity with the Jewish religion or just inability to check a calendar, I’m certain that Disney will find a way to resolve this issue, whether by making the date of acceptance flexible for all, or creating a loophole that would allow them to move it were it to be won by a Jew. I just want to make sure that it does not slip through the cracks, especially for those who expressed their concern that they didn’t even want to enter the contest if they were guaranteed that they could not claim the prize, and who felt excluded.
Next. Mark responds to letters regarding his update on the unofficial Gay Days events at Walt Disney World (link):
Bob writes:
First, if this question is inappropriate, out of line, or offensive in any way, please accept my apologies! I’m not trying to be offensive or demeaning in any way. I’m needing an honest opinion and I’m not sure who or where to ask this question. My family and myself are looking to visit Walt Disney World this summer. The best time for us to visit is the Tuesday after Memorial Day, May 30, through Monday, June 5. Summer ballgames haven’t started yet along with other activities planned for this summer. A month or so ago, I was on Allearsnet.com and I have also seen on your Web site that this the same time as Gay Days 2006. My children are 13, 9, and 6 and though I’m personally not opposed to that lifestyle, we are from a small, conservative, Midwestern town with little to no exposure to that lifestyle.
My question is: How obvious is it that this group has descended on Orlando? My concern is that I’m not ready to answer those questions for my 6- and 9-year-old yet. If you are unable to answer, I understand. Can you send me in the right direction to find an answer to this question? Thanks for your time!
Actually, this question has been asked more than once on our discussion forums, and also via e-mail. Everybody has their own comfort level, and despite the efforts of many on both sides, everybody is entitled to their own feelings. (It’s the imposition of those values upon others that causes most of the trouble in the world.)
Anyway, I’ve been hoping to put together an article about Gay Days this year, but I’ve gotten behind in my work and interviews. One of the issues that I’ve been trying to nail down (since I live in upstate New York and it’s hard to get first-hand reconnaissance from up here) is how the recent behavior has been. Many people report that, while in the parks, the Gay Day crowds are very respectful, just like other guests, though there is some hand-holding and some quick kissing, similar to well-behaved heterosexual crowds. Others report that there is a great deal of over-the-top behavior and that the crowd is out-of-control. Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to confirm either at this point.
However, there are two things to know. The participants almost exclusively wear red shirts during the events. So firstly, you might not to wear red during your trip, and secondly, if you see a large group of people in red and you don’t want to deal with it, you can head in a different direction when you see them coming. The other thing to know is that most (though not all) of the participants go to the official park of the day. Often the two factions choose different parks for the day, but that still leaves two parks mostly unaffected. (Also, many people like to avoid the park of the day simply to avoid the crowds.) As to the resorts, unless you’re staying at one of the official event hotels, you’re likely to be able to avoid much going on there.
At this point, it looks like the GayDay.com faction is going to be at Epcot on Friday, Magic Kingdom on Saturday and Animal Kingdom on Sunday. The GayDays.com faction will be at Animal Kingdom on Thursday, the Studios (and SeaWorld) on Friday, Magic Kingdom on Saturday and Epcot on Sunday.
Ross James writes:
I have been reading your site for ages. Having only been to Walt Disney World for the first time last year I have already booked our trip for December this year. I hate to think what we would have missed out on without your Web site.
OK, now I have to get picky. Your article on Gay Day(s). Yes I think it is stupid and they should just kiss and make-up. Can you imagine any other group doing this? No, I can’t either. While I am a gay man and this should appeal to me, it doesn’t. I have no interest in being in the World when it gets taken over by two feuding homosexual groups.
Anyway, the reason for writing: Was it on purpose that you didn’t provide a link to their sites? While I understand you may wasn’t to shield your younger readers and placate the Christians who oppose ‘my kind’, but as a journalist you have to provide a non-biased reporting structure.
A few years ago I wrote complaining about how the gay day(s) was reported on, after the event. I was not impressed with how the writer was saying they are OK with the event, but at the same time was putting such a negative slant on the article that any reader would think this was just plain bad news. My letter was never acknowledged.
Please remember that you have a responsibility of factual reporting, if you choose to cover a topic, your readers will expect the same treatment of each topic. Please be aware of your attempts to be ‘slight’ with how you handled this topic will not go undetected. Imagine the reaction of flag flying, card carrying gay people.
I still love my weekly dose of MousePlanet.
Thanks for your kind words about MousePlanet.
As to the Gay Days feud, my understanding of the root cause of the feud is one of vision. As I understand it, Doug Swallow wanted to keep it a community-focused event, just a way to fly the flag and have fun together, while the Manleys see it as a business proposition and a financial concern. There is obviously a great deal of tension between the two sides, and they will eventually have to come to some sort of detente, at least. If I ever get back to my planned feature story on the festivities, that will be a portion of the article.
Regarding the lack of links to the respective sites, it was simply an oversight. (Though both sites are linked in the “Park Events” section of every Update.) I was running late and rushing to put the Update together in time to grab a bite before recording my guest appearances on the Walt Disney World Today podcast, and I missed the link opportunities.
There were no nefarious intentions in the omission at all. In fact, those who know me know that my sympathies lie on your side of the debate, though I try to report in as balanced a fashion as possible. I am hoping to again attempt a feature story on the event, showing what the event means to participants and non-participants alike, as well as relating the history of the event.
I can’t speak to the lack of response to your prior e-mail, as it was not addressed to me, though I do know that all e-mails are at least read.
Thanks again for reading, and please be assured that no slight was intended.
