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- On Monday, Gov. Ron DeSantis threatened to build a prison next to Florida's Walt Disney World Resort.
- Shortly after, Disney publicized Disneyland's first official LGBTQ event for Pride Month.
- DeSantis and Disney have been public feuding, including over Florida's "Don't Say Gay" law.
Disney announced its first-ever LGBTQ event at Disneyland shortly after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis threatened during a press conference to build a state prison next to Orlando's Walt Disney World Resort.
Disney said in a tweet on Monday afternoon that "Disneyland After Dark: Pride Nite" would be coming to Disneyland in Anaheim, California, during Pride Month in June.
The two-night event, which will be held on June 13 and 15 inside the amusement park, will celebrate the LGBTQ communities and allies, Disneyland said in a blog.
The move was seemingly the latest development in a public spat between Disney and DeSantis, which began in early 2022 when Disney said it would work to repeal Florida's Parental Rights in Education Act, which critics have dubbed the "Don't Say Gay" law, Insider's Kimberley Leonard reported.
DeSantis has strongly defended the controversial legislation, which limits classroom instruction about gender identity and sexual orientation, with his administration pushing its expansion to all grades.
DeSantis said in March that Disney had "crossed the line" when it called for the repeal of the law.
This latest event was first announced by Disneyland on its blog last Thursday, but Disney's decision to publicize it on the company's official Twitter account came just hours after DeSantis made a threat about building a prison near the Florida amusement park during a press conference on Monday.
Speaking to reporters in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, DeSantis discussed how the land surrounding Disney's Florida amusement park, which is not owned by the company, could be developed in the future.
The governor, smiling, suggested that "another state prison" could be a good use of the land.
—Ron Filipkowski 🇺🇦 (@RonFilipkowski) April 17, 2023
The governor also said that a bill would be introduced in the state legislature next week to impose new inspection regulations on the Disney company.
DeSantis has been trying to remove a decades-old provision that gives Disney special self-governing status, meaning that it has its own police and fire departments, as well as planning powers.
Disney CEO Bob Iger slammed the plan as"anti-business" and "anti-Florida" in a shareholders' call earlier this month.
Despite this latest move, Iger told TIME magazine last week that he wants to end the feud with DeSantis by sitting down and talking it out.
Disney and DeSantis did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.