The Los Angeles Times reports that one Disneyland social club is suing another for allegedly demanding Mafia-style protection money to make sure its members were safe during a charity walk.
Yes, you just read Disneyland and Mafia in the same sentence.
The complaint asserts claims of defamation, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and conspiracy and requests compensatory and punitive damages.
Disney Social Club Phenomenon
Disney social clubs have been around for about five years and are membership-only groups of mostly adults, dressed in matching denim vests with the club’s logo and other Disney patches and pins. About 100 such clubs may roam the park on any given day, aiming to accomplish feats such as a “ride takeover” in which only members are on a given attraction at one time.
The Sons of Thunder, Neverlanders and Walt’s Wonderers are just a few of the cleverly named groups, and the “SC,” which stands for “Social Club” after their names, is inspired by the “MC” (“Motorcycle Club”) in the full names of the Hells Angels et al.
Many members have tattoos that feature various Disney personalities, including Walt Disney himself. From afar, the bunch of tattooed, similarly dressed people might indeed resemble biker gangs, but the general consensus is that they are simply fun-loving folks who love all things Disney, and, in fact, even participate in charity events held in the park and help park staff by picking up litter and such.
In the past, there have been allegations of disagreements between clubs and not-so-park-friendly behavior such as line-cutting and even weed-smoking, but group leaders have denied club involvement in those shenanigans.
And then came this lawsuit, alleging Big Trouble in the Happiest Place on Earth.
Main Street Fire Station 55 Social Club v. White Rabbits Social Club
In a lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court, California, John and Leslee Sarno, founders of Main Street Fire Station 55 Social Club, claim that in 2016, the group was planning a 9/11 memorial walk and fundraiser in the park. They allege that members of the White Rabbits Club, including leader Jakob Fite, told John Sarno to pay $500 to “protect” walkers or else Sarno and his wife would no longer be able to visit Disneyland. The White Rabbits, according to Mice Chat, is “one of the park’s older and larger social clubs.”
Sarno didn’t pay, giving rise to further allegations in the lawsuit that in retaliation, Fite and other White Rabbits have defamed him on social media and on Fite’s podcast. More specifically, Mice Chat characterizes the alleged defamation as such:
Sarno says that Fite then began making derogatory statements about him on his White Rabbits Facebook page and Club Hub group page, intimating that Sarno was a pedophile, that he was only masquerading as a firefighter, and that folks should watch out for him.
Sarno also alleges that Fite publicized Sarno’s private medical information, and the suit also names Kaiser Foundation Health Plan for not properly protecting Sarno’s records; Kaiser is aware of the lawsuit and has no comment.
The Sarnos are also suing Disneyland for failing to remedy the situation after being made aware of the White Rabbits’ alleged actions. A spokesperson for Disneyland told the LA Times the resort hasn’t been served with the suit and offered no further comment.
Sarno’s club has since disbanded and he says he is afraid to return to Disneyland and that his wife lost her job because of the whole ordeal. Fite denies the allegations in the complaint.
Disneyland’s Role
Does Disneyland bear any responsibility for the behavior of these social clubs, which, in 2014, Disneyland spokesperson Kevin Rafferty Jr. acknowledged the park was “fortunate” to have, because of their “strong affinity for Disneyland Resort?”
Amusement parks have a legal duty to maintain a reasonably safe environment for its guests, who are considered “invitees” under the law. That is, guests are invited to the park’s property for business purposes and the park seeks to earn money from their presence, so the park has a higher duty of care toward them. The park is responsible for routinely monitoring for dangerous conditions and fixing any found or at least warning guests about them.
If the park doesn’t carry out its duty and a park guest gets hurt or otherwise suffers damages because of it, the park may be held liable. Usually this type of negligence claim arises in the context of an injury sustained on a ride. Here, of course, we have a far different allegedly “dangerous condition,” but Main Street Fire Station 55′s lawyers could certainly build an argument on these basic negligence principles—and it would be up to a jury to decide the fate of the claim.
It appears that Main Street Fire Station 55 is claiming primarily emotional distress damages, however, which are notoriously difficult to recover. In this case, proving that Disneyland owes them monetary compensation could prove to be akin to climbing Space Mountain.
The Future of Disneyland Social Clubs
Could Disneyland avoid any potential duty to regulate social clubs’ behavior by outlawing them entirely, at least in their current incarnations? An interesting avenue could be through Disneyland’s Park Rules, which already explicitly reserve the right to deny admission to anyone based on “attire that could detract from the experience of other Guests.” Disneyland could attempt to use this provision to turn away the social clubs based on their matching denim vests and potentially intimidating appearance.
Aside from this not being a very smart PR move, though, Disneyland is in California, and the Golden State happens to have an impressively expansive anti-discrimination statute. The Unruh Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in public accommodations based on not only the usual protected classes such as race, sex, religion, etc., but also on unconventional dress and appearance. Because of the Unruh Act, Disneyland’s Park Rules regarding “attire that could detract from the experience of other Guests” may not withstand a legal challenge if someone ever decided to test them in court.
For now, we await word on whether Disneyland even gets served with this lawsuit, and we hope for an amicable, out-of-court, settlement between the sparring social clubs.
I mean, do any of us really want a live in a world in which fellow Disneyland lovers can’t manage to co-exist?
It’s a small world, after all.
