7/17/2017 Cinderella is homeless, Ariel ‘can’t afford to live on land’: Disney under fire for pay | US news | The Guardian In the evening, as fireworks burst above the Sleeping Beauty Castle, about 40 activists stationed themselves in the path of sunburned tourists streaming out of the gates. The experiences of homeless Disney employees vary. One homeless couple began working at Disneyland several years ago after moving from the midwest. They found themselves inhabiting their car after leaving what they described as an unhealthy living situation, and now must get by on a single income after one of them was forced to stop working because of a traffic accident. But they said that Disney was looking out for them. “They have a 24-hour helpline you can call,” said the husband. “We do call it, and we’re still working with them to find a place. It’s not easy finding anything in California.” Another Disney employee said she believed that people slept in the staff parking lot, and knew of one coworker who does so when she’s too exhausted to drive home between shifts. The employee said she wasn’t aware of any resources to help people sleeping in their cars. “It’s a thing that happens, but from what I’ve heard it’s just a matter of ‘do whatever you have to do not to be late to your shift’.” When a reporter approached the lot, which was bustling with cars and shuttle buses even at 11.30pm on Friday, a security guard barred entry. On occasion, homelessness among Disney employees leads to heartbreaking outcomes. In December, a worker at Disney put out a message on social media seeking information on Yeweinishet Mesfin, a 61-year-old custodian who had gone missing. According to police, Mesfin was found several days after a missing person’s report was filed. Her body was in her car outside the gym where she showered. An immigrant from Eritrea, Mesfin “was always gregarious and all that, but her relatives in Los Angeles say she would never meet with them”, said her cousin Tsegai Emmanuel, who lives in Ruston, Louisiana. “Nobody ever met in her place – she was always meeting people elsewhere. Nobody knew how she lived, where she lived.” An old acquaintance of Mesfin’s who now lives in Chicago, Lula Negussie, said she knew Mesfin affectionately as “Weyni”. Late last year, Negussie received a call from Mesfin’s boss, who said she “had never missed work, she had never been late, they were worried, they went to her old apartment, she doesn’t live there any more. They couldn’t find her”. Negussie had not spoken to her for many years and did not know she had fallen on hard times. Mesfin “was very sweet, very, very pretty”, Negussie said. “Just full of life.” Do you have an experience of homelessness to share with the Guardian? Get in touch Topics California Outside in America Theme parks Homelessness https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jul/17/disneyland-low-wages-anaheim-orange-county-homelessness 3/4
7/17/2017 Cinderella is homeless, Ariel ‘can’t afford to live on land’: Disney under fire for pay | US news | The Guardian Housing Poverty Minimum wage news https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/jul/17/disneyland-low-wages-anaheim-orange-county-homelessness 4/4
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