Days after Disney sued Florida's governor in federal court for what it described as retaliation for opposing the state's so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill, members of Disney World's governing board -- made up of Gov. Ron DeSantis appointees -- authorized a lawsuit Monday against the entertainment giant.
Members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District voted unanimously to sue Disney in state court in the Orlando area, as well as defend itself in federal court in Tallahassee where the entertainment company filed its lawsuit last Wednesday.
The Disney lawsuit against the governor, the board and its five members asks a judge to void the governor's takeover of the theme park district previously controlled by Disney for 55 years. The oversight board's lawsuit seeks to maintain its oversight of design and construction in the district that governs Disney World's 25,000 acres after the previous Disney-controlled board signed over those powers to the company before the DeSantis-appointed board members held their first meeting earlier this year.
"We will seek justice in our own backyard," said Martin Garcia, chair of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District.
An email seeking comment was sent Monday morning to Disney officials.
Disney filed its lawsuit last week after the oversight board appointed by DeSantis voted to void a deal that gave the company authority over design and construction decisions in its sprawling properties near Orlando.
Disney's lawsuit was the latest tug-of-war in a more than year-old feud between Disney and DeSantis that has engulfed the governor in criticism as he prepares to launch an expected presidential bid in the coming months.
DeSantis, who has framed himself as a Republican firebrand able to deftly implement his conservative agenda without drama, has dived headlong into the fray with the beloved company and major tourism driver, as business leaders and White House rivals bash his stance as a rejection of the small-government tenets of conservatism.
The fight began last year after Disney, in the face of significant pressure, publicly opposed a state law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades, a policy critics call "Don't Say Gay."
As punishment, DeSantis took over Disney World's self-governing district and appointed a new board of supervisors that would oversee municipal services in the sprawling theme parks. But before the new board came in, the company pushed through an 11th-hour agreement that stripped the new supervisors of much of their authority.
The creation of the self-governing district was instrumental in Disney's decision to build near Orlando in the 1960s. The company had told the state at the time that it planned to build a futuristic city that would include a transit system and urban planning innovations, so the company needed autonomy in building and deciding how to use the land. The futuristic city never materialized and instead morphed into a second theme park that opened in 1982.
The current board members, before and after the vote authorizing a state lawsuit against Disney on Monday, defended their work, claiming they were trying to promote better governance and bring the district into the 21st century.
Board member Ron Peri described being mocked in the media and getting hate mail. During the public comment portion of Monday's meeting, a man who has a Disney timeshare told the board members, "You guys are terrible and I think you all should resign."
Peri, who used to run a Florida-based ministry and has been accused of making past anti-LGBTQ statements, urged the public to give the new board a chance.
"Disney suing me? You've got to be kidding," Peri said. "I have loved Disney World. My kids have enjoyed it. The Magic Kingdom is wonderful. It is my hope the actions we take will be better for everyone, Disney included."
The RCMP is alleging Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada engaged in clandestine activities linked to serious criminal activity in this country, including homicides and extortions.
'Escalating incidents' between two Hamilton high schools are believed to be connected to a car crash last week that left a 15-year-old boy dead, police say.
The father of a 10-year-old girl found dead in her home in England fled to Pakistan and called U.K. police from there to say he had killed her, a jury heard Monday.
A major American retailer has stopped selling its new winter-themed candle over backlash from shoppers who said its design resembled Ku Klux Klan hoods.
An outbreak of a rare parasitic disease has been linked to undercooked bear meat eaten by dozens of people at a gathering in North Carolina, a new U.S. CDC report has revealed.
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British Columbia's New Democratic Party says it is responsible for a parody social media post that has B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad promising to bring back McDonald's McRib sandwiches.
A 26-year-old British man has died after falling from Spain’s tallest bridge during an attempt to climb one of its pylons.
The Alberta government is proposing additional restrictions on wind and solar farms that conservationists think are more about limiting renewable energy than protecting the environment.
'Escalating incidents' between two Hamilton high schools are believed to be connected to a car crash last week that left a 15-year-old boy dead, police say.
British Columbia's New Democratic Party says it is responsible for a parody social media post that has B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad promising to bring back McDonald's McRib sandwiches.
New data from the Angus Reid Institute shows that only one in five childless adults 50 or younger are confident they will have children.
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Students are returning to a Jewish girls' school in Toronto two days after it was struck with gunfire for the second time this year.
Russia said Monday it captured the village of Levadne in southern Ukraine as it probes for weaknesses along the war 's roughly 1,000-kilometre (600-mile) front line, including in eastern areas that are the main focus of Moscow's military effort before winter arrives.
A bus carrying university students crashed and overturned on a highway in northeastern Egypt Monday, killing 12 people and injuring 33 others, the health ministry said in a statement.
An Israeli airstrike hit an apartment building in northern Lebanon on Monday, killing at least 21 people, according to the Lebanese Red Cross.
A new wave of lawsuits filed Monday accuses Sean 'Diddy' Combs of raping women, sexually assaulting men and molesting a 16-year-old boy.
A 26-year-old British man has died after falling from Spain’s tallest bridge during an attempt to climb one of its pylons.
Former Russian double agent Sergei Skripal believes Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his Novichok poisoning, an inquiry into the death of a woman who was unwittingly poisoned by the nerve agent was told on Monday.
The RCMP is alleging Indian diplomats and consular officials based in Canada engaged in clandestine activities linked to serious criminal activity in this country, including homicides and extortions.
Three in four Canadians support defence spending on new submarines, according to a new survey from Nanos Research and 鶹ý.
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Your nose may be more powerful than you think.
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A NASA spacecraft rocketed away Monday on a quest to explore Jupiter’s tantalizing moon Europa and reveal whether its vast hidden ocean might hold the keys to life.
Indian authorities are warning locals to be careful after a leopard was seen sauntering past a police station late last week.
The 15th-century explorer Christopher Columbus was a Sephardic Jew from Western Europe, Spanish scientists said on Saturday, after using DNA analysis to tackle a centuries-old mystery.
Canadian stand-up comedian and former talk show host Mike Bullard has died.
Jamie Foxx hadn’t been on stage for 18 years, but he returned recently for a very special reason.
Ariana Grande performed one of her greatest hits on the latest episode of 'Saturday Night Live' – her famed Celine Dion impression.
The Nobel memorial prize in economics was awarded Monday to three economists who have studied why some countries are rich and others poor and have documented that freer, open societies are more likely to prosper.
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Mike Grossman was adamant he wasn’t going to fall for anyone in Australia.
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The Government of Canada honoured Floyd H. Prosser through Parks Canada’s Hometown Heroes program during a ceremony in Halifax, N.S., Saturday.
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The Ontario Provincial Police says the number of fatal collisions caused by distracted driving on the roads it patrols has increased by 40 per cent compared to this time last year.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled on Thursday his vision of a 'a fun, exciting future,' an 'age of abundance' full of his company’s self-driving cars without steering wheels, parking lots turned into parks and robots that will walk among the population – that he once again promised would be available within a few years.
Dozens of cars were pulled out of the Detroit River in west Windsor on Tuesday, causing many questions for Windsorites.
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Canadian hip hop artist Dillan King says running 100 marathons in 100 days was not only the hardest thing he has ever done, but the 'proudest accomplishment' of his entire life.
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Calgary libraries will reopen on Wednesday following a cyber security breach.
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Hundreds of people bundled up to take part in a longstanding Thanksgiving Day tradition in Kitchener.
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A major American retailer has stopped selling its new winter-themed candle over backlash from shoppers who said its design resembled Ku Klux Klan hoods.
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Smash Pickleball is the region’s only indoor facility dedicated specifically to the sport.
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Chatham-Kent police say a 37-year-old Merlin man has died after a two-vehicle collision.
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Vicki Huntington says two things are critical to be elected as an Independent member of the legislature in British Columbia — trusted name recognition and an angry constituency.
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Nearly two years after a man was stabbed to death in downtown Kelowna, RCMP have made an arrest in the case.
The Vancouver Giants scored late to force overtime before winning 4-3 over the Lethbridge Hurricanes Friday night.
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Local photographers were amazed by the aurora borealis display in the night sky over Lethbridge on Thursday night.
A 36-year-old man is charged with drug-impaired and dangerous driving after a head-on crash in northwest Ontario last Thursday.
Provincial police in Hearst, Ont., stopped an unlicensed northwestern Ontario driver for a morning traffic infraction.
A 32-year-old woman has been charged in connection with the death of an 18-year-old man this past January, according to Ontario Provincial Police.
A five-hour drive from St. John's, N.L., and well off the beaten path, Point Leamington seems an unlikely spot for a one-of-a-kind tourist attraction.
A Conservative MP from Newfoundland and Labrador says some small towns in his rural riding are overrun with crime, but police say they haven't received reports to that effect.
As millions in federal funding flow into a Labrador group whose claims of Inuit identity have been rejected by Indigenous organizations across Canada, a national Inuit leader worries the Liberal government is putting the rights of Indigenous Peoples at risk.
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