Disney made a $5 million pledge to nonprofit social justice organizations on Wednesday as demonstrations over the police killing of George Floyd continued across the country.
Civil rights organization the NAACP will receive $2 million of the total pledge. In a statement, Disney said the donation would “further their long-standing work promoting social justice by eliminating disparities and racial discrimination through their advocacy and education programs.”
Disney did not identify the other nonprofits that would stand to receive the remaining $3 million but said the organizations would be those that “advance social justice.”
“The killing of George Floyd has forced our nation to once again confront the long history of injustice that black people in America have suffered, and it is critical that we stand together, speak out, and do everything in our power to ensure that acts of racism and violence are never tolerated,” Bob Chapek, chief executive of Disney, said in a statement.
“This $5 million pledge will continue to support the efforts of nonprofit organizations such as the NAACP that have worked tirelessly to ensure equality and justice,” he added.
Disney joins a list of corporations donating to social justice organizations in the wake of Floyd’s death, including Facebook, Apple, and Google’s YouTube. Responses to some of the efforts have been mixed, with some critics pointing out that company donations represent a small portion of total revenues.
In November, Disney again confronted its complicated legacy of racist characterizations in some of its older animated titles. The launch of Disney+ prompted the company to label movies on the platform like Dumbo, Peter Pan, and The Jungle Book as having “outdated cultural depictions.” Song of the South, a 1946 Oscar-winning movie considered to have racist depictions of black people, was left off the streaming service altogether.
