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   From: invalid@dont-email.me   
      
   NEW YORK (AP) — Abigail E. Disney has been critical of the company that   
   bears her name before. But for the first time, Disney, the granddaughter   
   of co-founder Roy O. Disney, has put her views into the medium the Mouse   
   House was built on: a movie.   
      
   In the new documentary “The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales,” Disney   
   argues that the Walt Disney Co. has lost its moral compass. As one of the   
   company’s most prominent and outspoken critics — one who happens to be   
   from within the Disney family — Disney lays out an unflattering portrait   
   of the company, particularly in regard to pay inequity and the struggles   
   of some theme park employees to sustain their families on minimum-wage   
   salaries.   
      
   “They have gone the way of most every other company in this country. They   
   started with a bigger idea of themselves than that,” Disney said in an   
   interview. “The Walt Disney Co. was better. It was kinder, it was gentler.   
   It was a human company.   
      
   “We have lost the plot,” said Disney.   
      
   “The American Dream,” which is playing in select theaters and debuts   
   Friday on video-on-demand, is directed by Disney, an activist and film   
   producer, and the filmmaker Kathleen Hughes. It was made on the heels of a   
   series of tweets from Disney in 2019 in which she slammed Bob Iger, then-   
   Disney chief executive, for compensation that in 2018 surpassed $65   
   million. Disney’s siblings, Susan Disney Lord and Tim Disney, are also   
   executive producers on the film, which was made without any interaction   
   from the company.   
      
   “No one’s reached out to me. I’m a little mystified by it, frankly,” said   
   Disney. “I’m happy to talk if that’s what they want to do. I am rooting   
   for them. I love this company. This is a love letter to the company. But   
   when you really, really love something and see it going off the rails, you   
   can’t be silent.”   
      
   Disney World ‘enthusiasts’ believe trip cost too much for families   
   The film follows four Disneyland custodians who on a salary of $15 an hour   
   struggle to make ends meet in the high-priced Anaheim, California, area.   
   Growing pay gaps between executives and low-rung workers is an issue   
   Disney knows goes far beyond the company her film concerns. At one point   
   in the film, she describes her hope for change as “a little Disney.   
      
   “I know that people think I’m just living out here in abstract land,”   
   Disney said. “But the abstractions matter a lot, and the sensibilities   
   must change.”   
      
   Wages for some Disney workers have been changing. Unions representing   
   9,500 workers at Disneyland averted a strike by ratifying a contact that   
   raised pay from $15.45 an hour to $18. A union representing hotel workers   
   at an Anaheim hotel also recently reached agreement on $23.50 an hour.   
   (Anaheim’s living wage ordinance, which is $23.50, was earlier ruled not   
   to apply to Disneyland.)   
      
   In response to “The American Dream,” a Disney spokesperson replied with a   
   statement.   
      
   “Our amazing cast members, storytellers, and employees are the heart and   
   soul of Disney, and their wellbeing is our top priority. We work hard to   
   ensure that our team is supported in ways that enable them to grow their   
   careers, care for their families, and thrive at work — which is why so   
   many people choose to spend their entire careers with us.”   
      
   The spokesperson also cited medical coverage, access to tuition-free   
   higher education and subsidized child care as worker benefits. “We are   
   committed to building on these impactful programs by identifying new ways   
   to support our cast members and communities around the world,” said the   
   spokesperson.   
      
   When Roy E. Disney, who founded the company with his brother, Walt, in   
   1923, stepped down from the board in 2003, the family ceased participating   
   in running the company. Since Abigail Disney made her documentary, which   
   first premiered in January at the Sundance Film Festival, Iger has been   
   succeeded by Bob Chapek, who had previously run parks for the company. In   
   that period, prices have risen sharply at the company’s theme parks —   
   another point of contention for Disney.   
      
   Disney World gives new look at ‘Moana’ attraction at Epcot   
   “I just don’t think it’s a good idea for Disneyland to become a luxury   
   vacation that most Americans can’t access,” she said. “I don’t know how   
   much more the brand can take.”   
      
   Disney, though, was encouraged by workers who protested Chapek’s response   
   to Florida legislation that critics have dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.   
   To Disney, the situation reflected the corporation’s struggle to maintain   
   a role as any kind of moral authority amid such politically polarized   
   times.   
      
   “There is no such thing as not having a position on this question,” she   
   said. “There is no neutral ground. To pretend you can stand still on a   
   moving train is a terrible mistake.”   
      
   Ultimately, Disney increasingly doesn’t recognize the company that for   
   much of her life was the family business. Making a movie about her   
   disapproval, she says, was “exquisitely uncomfortable.” But she hasn’t   
   given up a happily-ever-after ending.   
      
   “I really do mean well,” Disney says. “You can say a lot of things about   
   me, but I mean well.”   
      
      
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)