Disney World Cast Member Accosted During Parade
Another day, another story of a Disney World employee being accosted. This incident occurred on November 5, 2023, and comes courtesy of WDW News Today, which only just learned of it via the Orange County Sheriff’s Office report. A Disney cast member claims that a guest, who was identified as Emily Santos, a 58-year-old woman from Sacramento, California, grabbed her vest during the Festival of Fantasy Parade. Santos demanded to know the cast member’s name, according to the report, but the cast member – who is 28 years old – told Santos to stop touching her and eventually walked away to notify her supervisor. Santos had a different take, telling the sheriff’s department that the cast member “continuously stared at her and her family” and that she wanted to report the cast member to her manager; when the cast member ignored her and walked away, Santos said she merely tapped the woman on the shoulder. A second Disney employee corroborated the cast member’s account of the incident. Santos wasn’t charged, with the sheriff’s office report written “for informational purposes only.”
Angry Guest Grabs Cast Member by the Vest During Magic Kingdom Festival of Fantasy Paradehttps://t.co/nEwSRpPpZm
— WDW News Today (@WDWNT) March 24, 2024
This one is kind of a she said, she said deal, but given how violence seems to pop up at Disney World more often than you’d think, it’s entirely believable that someone grabbed an employee. It seems strange that a person would be so dead-set on reporting a cast member to the manager (the Karen jokes write themselves) but stop at merely tapping them on the shoulder. It’s possible, I guess, but at the same time, why would the cast member go so far as to report the incident to her boss and have the sheriff’s office called if it was just a harmless tap? I don’t think the police would take kindly to being roused over something like that. (They probably weren’t thrilled about it even if the cast member did have her vest pulled.) Of course, anyone could be lying, but this one would involve a second employee who confirmed that the guest pulled the cast member’s vest and wouldn’t let go when asked. Now, it’s important to remember that when you account for the number of people who visit Disney World, the ones who behave this way are a drop in the bucket. But when there are crowds like that, it’s a good idea to keep your wits about you, even when waving at Disney Princesses as they float by.
