Out & Equal conference will be held at Walt Disney World with major corporate sponsors

This culture war against DEI is bizarre. There's no universe where it prevails. I've been part of DEI related groups in two companies now, and at least in my line of work, people want this. The idea that there's no misogyny, homophobia or racism in the workplace is pretty naive, and these kinds of efforts seek to correct that. Customers mostly don't want to work from companies who are against this.

I don't think prevailing is the point. Instead, I think it's one of the Things That Make The Base Mad--and getting people angry helps get them to the polls, and encourages them to write those checks.

For example, I am not sure everyone in the GOP is happy that the judicial dog finally caught the Roe v. Wade car.

Edited to add: There's also the adage “When you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression." So at least part if this is in (strong!) reaction to the fact that it won't prevail.

But this does feel like an f-you directed towards Tallahassee on Disney's part.

DeSantis will tell his base that this is the type of “woke ideology” that the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District will put to a stop. They will believe that. The event will happen without issue and his followers will tell everyone that their leader really stuck it to Disney.

Yeah, I know prevailing isn't the point. It's just sad that so many people want to not only deny the existence of institutional bias, they want to double down on it.

I think the Roe decision was definitely a case of be careful what you wish for. Reduces interest from your side and energizes your opposition. Many politicians (of all walks of political life and ideologies) care more about winning than principles or policies. Do/say whatever you think is necessary to win (often times even if its inconsistent and you have no track record...despite being in office for a decade or more... of doing any of it). Probably best to not do anything or at least only propose things when you know you don't have the votes. Tougher when appointing judges who have life time appointments and thoughts/goals/plans of their own. Then you get to appoint 3 Supremes in a row. Not in the official playbook I am sure.

And seems pretty clear Disney's move was at least in large part aimed at Tallahassee. And it will give DeSantis another chance to act politically.

But was it really a "move?" Apparently it's not the year that they've hosted the conference, and it's not really them hosting as much as it is a customer paying for the space (even if it is a non-profit).

Gotta be honest, if I was putting together a conference like this, the last place I'd want to spend my money in is Florida. I know Disney doesn't equal Florida. I know different counties lean different ways, etc, but at the end of the day there are plenty of places with policies of inclusion and protection that would seem to be more deserving of your money.

I can definitely see that. But Orange County FL was about +10D in the 2022 election, with Osceola was just about a dead heat. So this is also showing support for folks in those counties who are already outsiders in the broader state (which was about +20R).

Really big conferences can only be held in so many places, so there's also that. Orlando and Vegas are among the largest, but Vegas sometimes loses because it costs more for everything (much stronger union presence). Mind you, I have no idea what the attendee count for this is, or floor space needs.

I wish there was a third party that was worth a damn.

We don't have ONE party that's worth a damn, now you want THREE!?