The Walt Disney Company appears poised to be the latest major corporation to discontinue two of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives amid investor pressure. Yesterday, The National Pulse reported that Deloitte—the largest consulting firm in the world and holder of numerous contracts with the United States federal government—announced to staff it was ending its DEI programs.
According to its recent Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing, Disney will remove the “Reimagine Tomorrow” program from its 2024 SEC 10-K report’s DEI section. The “Reimagine Tomorrow” initiative was featured in the 2023 report as a digital platform intended to amplify supposedly marginalized voices and outline Disney’s commitments to DEI. The decision to withdraw the program follows previous controversy that arose during a summit held last year, where discussions among company executives regarding increased LGBTQ+ content in Disney’s offerings were leaked.
As of the time of publication, the “Reimagine Tomorrow” program’s online presence remains. The current webpage also details racial and gender composition within Disney’s content and workforce, drawing from data as of 2021. It highlights the role of Business Employee Research Groups in representing a diverse employee base.
Disney’s decision regarding the future of its “Reimagine Tomorrow” program could signal a significant scaleback in the company’s push of DEI initiatives among its employees and public-facing programming. However, there are some concerns that the move may also be an attempt by Disney to merely conceal its DEI projects in the hopes of allaying public scrutiny.