![handle is hein.journals/washjolta20 and id is 1 raw text is:
WASHINGTON JOURNAL OF LAW, TECHNOLOGY & ARTS
VOLUME 20, ISSUE 1 WINTER 2024
CARANO V. DISNEY: THE FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHT OF EXPRESSIVE ASSOCIATION
AS A DEFENSE TO FIRING EMPLOYEES FOR THEIR POLITICAL SPEECH
Dr. Joel Timmer]
ABSTRACT
Following a series of controversial social media posts by actress Gina Carano, a cast
member of the Disney+ Star Wars series, The Mandalorian, Disney terminated her employment
on the show and announced that Carano would not appear in any future Star Wars projects.
According to Disney, Carano was terminated because the views expressed in her posts did not
align with the company's values. Carano filed suit against Disney, claiming Disney violated
California state labor laws that generally prohibit employers from sanctioning employees for
their political activities. In response, Disney claims that the First Amendment right of expressive
association provides an absolute defense to Carano's action. Disney argues that this right allows
an employer who is engaged in expressive activity, or protected speech, to terminate employees
who the employer believes will interfere with or compromise the message the employer wants to
send with its speech, even when that termination would otherwise violate the law. In essence,
Disney is arguing that the high-profile, controversial positions Carano has taken detracts viewers
of The Mandalorian from the show's messages, and that the First Amendment protects its
decision to terminate her employment as a result. This article examines case law on the right of
expressive association, as well as the main arguments made by each of the parties in the case, to
conclude that the weight of authority is on Disney's side.
1 Professor, Department of Film, Television and Digital Media, Texas Christian University; Ph.D., Indiana
University, 2002; J.D., University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, 1993.](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.journals/washjolta20&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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