My Official Statement

[gonzolady]

Way to make you & Kevin the victims. Not cool. This was terribly written & offensive to those who suffered.

 

[Irish_Mike]

Nothing like a passive aggressive statement to start that continued growth and improvement.

 

[fly girl]

Finally, an official statement! Honestly, as a long time Dis'er, the silence was deafening. And the IG posts felt incredibly tone deaf (although, in fairness, I am sure the new and most alarming allegations you were not privy too.) And I do agree, some of the statements made on the IG post were grotesque and unwarranted. However, I am still shocked it took you this long to acknowledge the situation.

Granted, I am not in your position and I don't understand the full gravity of it all. No doubt, it isn't easy. However, I would suggest as your company moves forward, please be do not have this prolonged silence again. Even if you cannot speak, tell us! Not hearing anything from you only exacerbated the situation. And when you can be more transparent, do so -- in the hopes that trust can be regained.

I hope you take this knowing it is coming from a place that wants to see success for your employees. No malice.

My empathy goes to Sean, Dustin, and all of the victims whom are still silent.

 

[Erikaelvis]

How dare you attack the very people who have supported you and your business all these years. You would have nothing without your audience. You john, had a duty to protect YOUR employees from abuse, assault and harassment and you did nothing.
You stood by while YOUR employees were humiliated and ridiculed. But hey if the money is rolling in no skin off your back. You must take some responsibility in your compliance.
You and Kevin are NOT the victims.

 

[WebmasterKathy]

Thank you, John.

To the haterz who have clamored for a statement but are still complaining in light of this post, just stop. Take a break, or take your vitriol somewhere else. John, Corey and the team are dealing with change and with running a successful business.

Take the snark to a gossip site, but we do not want or need it here.

 

[EpcotPhoenician]

I looked up to Pete and his accomplishments for quite some time. And without Moving to Orlando's content, I wouldn't have made the move to Winter Garden.

But, I suppose much like Disney, there is an "on stage" and "backstage"... and what was going on backstage was horrifying in comparison to the glorified projection of perfection on stage (multiple DVC contracts, being invited to every PR event, etc.)

I will continue to watch the DIS content, but only for Craig (who lives on my street) and Ryno.

 

[joannam]

If you had said what was in the first few paragraphs (or some legally allowed version) a couple of days ago, you wouldn’t have needed to add the final few paragraphs.
You’re in the business of gaining people’s trust and people are hurt when they feel that it’s been betrayed. You were silent and they filled the void with their anger. Some members of your team realized that and made what statements they legally could. Their statements were not lengthy or detailed, but at least they were made.

 

[Irish_Mike]

Thank you, John.

To the haterz who have clamored for a statement but are still complaining in light of this post, just stop. Take a break, or take your vitriol somewhere else. John, Corey and the team are dealing with change and with running a successful business.

Take the snark to a gossip site, but we do not want or need it here.

Feel free to ban me, but this is just as tone deaf as the original post. None of us care that John & Kevin got mean comments, they are hardly the victims in this scenario and should not be treated as such. As someone who was a victim of sexual assault, that's laughable.

 

[disneyland_is_magic]

The problem wasn’t the slowness John it was the content. You guys are off posting about food and big hats at DL while two major new allegations came out today. It was tone deaf.

I am deeply heartbroken for Dustin today. If true, the new allegation he learned TODAY will affect him for a long time. And worse, he waited 10 YEARS to put this piece of information into his puzzle to work through in therapy.

If you can’t say you are sad because your lawyer says you can’t, then maybe it would have been better to say nothing? The posts from DL send the absolute wrong message.

I thought today was a very sad day.

Yes, ban me too. This is super gross.

 

[carlyannek]

I don't see any haterzzz in this thread. Asking for accountability is not complaining. Dustin did not complain. Sean did not complain. People who have spent their hard earned dollars because they trusted this company are not complaining. The only source of vitriol is coming from the (former)owner of these boards. Let's not forget that.

 

[Strikan]

Thank you, John.

To the haterz who have clamored for a statement but are still complaining in light of this post, just stop. Take a break, or take your vitriol somewhere else. John, Corey and the team are dealing with change and with running a successful business.

Take the snark to a gossip site, but we do not want or need it here.

It is not snark. Folks have legitimate complaints and they are your customers and clients. Why treat them this way?

 

[anna samantha]

Edited to add - regarding anonymity - the people who have been most affected by abuse by their employer (and your company) have put their names to their experiences, which takes a lot of bravery.

I agree. Thank you Sean, Dustin, JL and Charles.

 

[tinkerone]

Thank you, John.

To the haterz who have clamored for a statement but are still complaining in light of this post, just stop. Take a break, or take your vitriol somewhere else. John, Corey and the team are dealing with change and with running a successful business.

Take the snark to a gossip site, but we do not want or need it here.

Thank you Kathy, I was thinking the very same. They want information, they don't like information, they complain about information. They don't want to hear resolutions, they want to whine. They want to blame.
Not going to make the haters happy so might as well let them ***** and let them move on.

 

[Strikan]

Thank you Kathy, I was thinking the very same. They want information, they don't like information, they complain about information. They don't want to hear resolutions, they want to whine. They want to blame.
Not going to make the haters happy so might as well let them ***** and let them move on.

None of this is correct, but whatever helps you sleep at night I suppose.

 

[jsbowl16]

This is like Paterno/Sandusky 2.0. Claim ignorance, sweep it under the rug and hope it goes away on its own.

 

[2xcited2sleep]

Good start. What literal, tangible, steps are you taking to ensure this doesn't happen again?

 

[EpcotPhoenician]

Thank you Kathy, I was thinking the very same. They want information, they don't like information, they complain about information. They don't want to hear resolutions, they want to whine. They want to blame.
Not going to make the haters happy so might as well let them ***** and let them move on.

Respectfully, I disagree. I have worked in communications in the field of federal law enforcement, and I enjoy geeking out with this sort of thing, so bare with me please. The statement was 318 words.

76 words - Introduction and legal talk
21 words - Statement regarding his pride in the team and employees
59 words - Talks about how Dreams will continue to thrive and grow
137 words - Taking a defensive position regarding the hostility that has circulated social media over the past few days
25 words - Closing remark

So, I think that people aren't necessarily complaining about the information... they just expected.... more of what is in bold above.

Again, I will continue to support DIS as long as Craig and Ryno are around. And I will continue to chat on these boards. But I understand why people are frustrated.

 

[bsmcneil]

Thank you Kathy, I was thinking the very same. They want information, they don't like information, they complain about information. They don't want to hear resolutions, they want to whine. They want to blame.
Not going to make the haters happy so might as well let them ***** and let them move on.

This seems like a lot of projection. What information has anyone said they didn't like? What resolutions are there? Who - among people actually victimized - has been whining? This feels like a terminally online sort of thing - flesh and blood human beings were touched without permission by their boss (a major revelation at colleges, sports, churches, politics - literally everywhere) and the suggestion is that people asking for clarity, transparency, and progress are whining? Big, big, big yikes for so much of this.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I hope in the future you can be more willing to take even a small amount of accountability and responsibility for what happened in your company, instead of just attacking anyone who dares to question things or not offer complete support. This is the exact tone that would come with shaming people on the boards who would ask why certain team members left so abruptly and mysteriously.

People have real questions about who knew what and if Pete was enabled or was allowed to keep his actions hidden for fear that it would hurt the business, and it's not wrong for them to ask those questions and voice their frustrations.

It's much easier to attempt to play victim, I know. But it's a very bad look to go on the attack during a time like this.

I expected better of you, John.

Mic Dropped. Absolute perfection @Tonyz

 

[tinkerone]

None of this is correct, but whatever helps you sleep at night I suppose.

It's all correct. I have been reading for days that something needs to be done about Pete. I have been reading how people have the right to know what is going on.
So, John posts about what is happening but apparently it's not enough.
You have options. You can talk with your wallet. You can choose to leave the boards. You can unfollow the YouTube channel. But you don't get to have a say in what should or should not happen within a company you don't own.