- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Disney’s self-management abilities on Monday.
- He nominated five people to a new board that will oversee the Disney district.
- One nominee, former pastor Ron Peri, previously said he thought estrogen in the water turns men gay, CNN reported.
The appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of the new Disney oversight board once admitted that men are turning gay because of estrogen in tap water, CNN reported.
DeSantis appointed the board members Monday after he signed a bill that dismantles Disney’s self-governing abilities. One of his nominees is former pastor Ron Peri, who is also the CEO of The Gathering – a Christian ministry.
CNN reported that Peri made a series of derogatory comments against the LGBTQ community, including calling homosexuality “evil” and making the baseless claim that birth control pills are flushed. in the water supply makes men gay.
“So why are there homosexuals today? There are many reasons, you know, given. Some would say the rise of estrogen in our societies. You know, there’s estrogen in the water from birth control pills. giving birth. They can’t take it,” Peri reportedly said in a January 2022 Zoom discussion, which was posted on YouTube and later removed. “Testosterone levels in most men in America have dropped 50 points in the last 10 years. You know, and so, maybe that’s part of it.”
Peri continued: “But the big part that I would suggest to you, based on what is said here, is to remove restraint. So our society gives restraint. And therefore, that is the responsibility of a society to restrain for people to do bad things ? Well, you remove the restraints, and then bad things happen.”
—Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) February 27, 2023
Scientific studies have found that less than 1% of the estrogen found in drinking water comes from birth control pills and that overall low levels of estrogen found in drinking water are not associated with poor health. health effects or changes in a person’s sexual orientation. CNN reports that this claim stems from a conspiracy theory by Alex Jones. In 2015, Jones claimed that “chemicals in the water” were “making frogs gay,” The Texas Observer reported.
The pastor also likened homosexuality to a “disease” and claimed that the LGBTQ community has no “stake in the future.”
“There are many negative effects of a homosexual lifestyle,” Peri said, according to CNN. “There are diseases, but more than that.”
DeSantis said the state senate is scheduled to meet next week to confirm new board members.
Nearly a year after Disney spoke out against DeSantis’ so-called “Don’t Say Gay” bill, Florida’s governor revoked the company’s special authority on Monday. The bill, formally called the Parental Rights in Education Act, prohibits teachers from discussing sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade, Insider previously reported.
Since its inception in 1967, Disney has been under the Reedy Creek Improvement District and has been able to appoint its own board members because the company owns most of the land. The district also allows Disney to have its own fire unit, among other emergency services. The district will now be called the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and Disney employees, owners, or operators are prohibited from becoming board members.
“Today, the corporate empire is finally over,” DeSantis said during a press conference Monday, held at a fire station on Disney property. “There’s a new sheriff in town, and accountability is the order of the day.”