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'Disney Karen' Jonathan Vanboskerck slammed as racist s**thead for saying 'wokeness is ruining the experience'

'You're a mediocre, racist, misogynistic manbaby,' one Twitter user slammed Vanboskerck

A middle-aged conservative Republican man from Nevada has earned severe backlash on social media for his problematic opinion piece published in Orlando Sentinel. In his article, Jonathan Vanboskerck has argued that rising 'wokeness' is ruining the Disney World experience.

The self-proclaimed loyal Disney customer 'for decades', wrote against the idea of inclusivity, saying, "The problem is, I’m not traveling across the country and paying thousands of dollars to watch someone I do not know express themselves." He expressed his deep displeasure with some of the anti-racist changes in the Disney World rides. Meanwhile, Twitterati has slammed his stance vehemently, labeling him as 'Disney Karen'. 

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The writer also mentioned that he is a Christian and Conservative Republican, which makes his world view different from the 'people who run Disney'. 

Who is Jonathan Vanboskerck?

In his opinion piece for Orlando Sentinel, published on April 23, 2021, Jonathan Vanboskerck mentions that he and his family vacation at Disney World every year. They even take a Disney cruise once every year or in two years. 

The resident of Las Vegas, Nevada is believed by many to be the Deputy District Attorney at Clark County. In 2018, he apparently facilitated Nevada's first execution in 12 years, by injecting the convict Scott Raymond Dozier with a lethal combination of drugs.

In his article, he goes on to complain about his disapproval of cast members at Disney World being allowed to sport tattoos or haircuts of their choice, in an effort to promote inclusivity.

"Recently, Disney announced that cast members are now permitted to display tattoos, wear inclusive uniforms and display inclusive haircuts. Disney did all of this in the name of allowing cast members to express themselves," Vanboskerck writes. 

He continues, "The problem is, I’m not traveling across the country and paying thousands of dollars to watch someone I do not know express themselves. I am there for the immersion and the fantasy, not the reality of a stranger’s self-expression. I do not begrudge these people their individuality and I wish them well in their personal lives, but I do not get to express my individuality at my place of business."

He even goes on to imply that Disney has been moving away from the legacy and vision of founder Walt Disney, in order to adapt to a reformed society. 

"Unfortunately, I am strongly rethinking our commitment to Disney and, thus, Orlando. The more Disney moves away from the values and vision of Walt Disney, the less Disney World means to me. Disney is forgetting that guest immersion is at the core of its business model," he says. 

He also complains about Disney introducing the 'woke scalpel' to Jungle Cruise, as the figure of Trader Sam was recently removed to prevent negative depiction of Native Americans. However, Vanboskerck thinks, "Trader Sam is out because he might offend certain people. Every grown-up in the room realizes that Trader Sam is not a representation of reality and is meant as a funny and silly caricature. It is no more based in racism than every Disney caricature of an out-of-touch white American dad."

He also voices his disappointment with Disney World making changes in Splash Mountain and Pirates of the Caribbean to make the experiences anti-racist. 

Vanboskerck accuses Disney of serving political agenda through their upgrades. "Disney World is going to lose us as customers if it continues down this path. I do not want to have Disney World taken away from us because Disney cares more about politics than happy guests," he asserts. 

In the end, he appeals to Disney to revert to the vision of Walt Disney, and stop giving in to political correctness to appease the 'Twitter mob'.

'You're a mediocre, racist, misogynistic manbaby'

The article earned Jonathan Vanboskerck severe backlash on Twitter as users called out his 'racism' and 'bigotry', even demanding that he stops visiting Disney World.

 "I hope Jonathan Vanboskerck and people like him stop going to Disney. I love it and would like fewer bigots there. "It's a small, white, Republican Evangelical world, after all..." tweeted author John Pavlovitz.

"Dear Jonathan Vanboskerck. Black Americans love Disney too. As well as Latinx, Asian, and Indigenous Americans. We spend just as much money as you do for an enjoyable vacation experience, and we're quite pleased about Disney's evolution. We hope you'll enjoy Six Flag," another user wrote. 

One user dubbed him a 'racist sh**head', tweeting, "Here's the face of the "master" race. Here's what promoting America First, Anglo-Saxon heritage looks like: A racist shithead who thinks Walt Disney World is too woke because he can't sing Song of the South on Splash Mountain or drop a hard R on the Jungle Cruise."