Disneyland Breaks Silence On Pro-Palestine Protestors Shutting Down Entrance

Disneyland has broken its silence on the Pro-Palestine protestors who were spotted rioting outside Disneyland's entrance over the weekend. Due to the number of demonstrators, the Disneyland entrance was temporarily shut down.

Pro-Palestinian protests have been on the rise across the United States since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. On Saturday, over 1,000 protestors gathered outside of the Disneyland entrance in Anaheim, California.

Following the protest that occurred outside the Disneyland entrance, a spokesperson of the company released a statement.

“With today’s demonstration, our focus was on the safety and well-being of our guests, our cast members and employees, and the protestors, and we coordinated closely with public safety officials and community leaders to help maintain order,” a Disneyland spokesperson told SFGATE in a statement.

Spectrum News reported that Disneyland covered its marquee sign on Harbor Boulevard, but the company did not address that report.

https://twitter.com/hamwrestler/status/1733623911634629110

The Pro-Palestine protestors were calling attention to the Walt Disney Company’s financial support of Israeli aid organizations. The demonstrators marched up and down Harbor Boulevard in Anaheim, CA from 1 p.m. to approximately 4:30 p.m. local time.

The Anaheim Police Department had to shut down traffic in the area and close down the Disneyland entrance for a period of time. The protest was peaceful. Sgt. Jon McClintock told SFGATE that no arrests were made.

Harbor Boulevard eventually reopened and traffic in the area resumed following the protest, McClintock confirmed with the outlet.

According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), protests are categorized as pro-Palestinian "when the messaging supports the Palestinian governments and its civilians, or condemns the Israeli government's actions in Gaza and settlements in the West Bank."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHlIIphjt2g

This marks the first Pro-Palestine protest to occur at Disneyland Park.

Some of the signs that were being held up into the air read “Shame on Disney,” “The happiest place on Earth kills children,” and “Stop funding Israel terror.” These signs were referring to the company’s recent donation of $2 million to organizations that provide relief to Israel.

“Disney has failed to recognize, condemn or even send some type of message that is empathetic to Palestinian suffering and the genocide that’s happening in Gaza,” Rida Hamida, founder of Latino Muslim Unity told SFGATE. “So the message here is: shame on Disney for not seeing that Palestinian children matter, and are just as equal as Israeli children.”

"People need to recognize that these corporations are complicit, that Disney is complicit with genocide,” Hamida added.

After they found out about the donations that the Walt Disney Company made, three Disneyland employees stated that they were quitting their jobs on the spot.

“When they found out that Disney was giving $2 million to Israeli relief efforts when they themselves can’t even afford to pay their rent, they said they were quitting right there and then,” Hamida said.

According to AXIOS, a growing proportion of the demonstrations have been in support of Palestinians as Israel's military operations in the Gaza Strip have ramped up and the death toll has increased.