Disneyland was most certainly not The Happiest Place on Earth for two families who got into a violent brawl with each other at the California park on Saturday, nor for the shocked and terrified park-goers who tried valiantly to get out of the way of the combatants.
As The L.A. Times reports, the incident began with a verbal confrontation between two families outside of Goofy’s Playhouse, in the Toontown section of the park. What started the brawl remains unclear, but by the time video cameras were pointed at the scene, a man in a red shirt could be seen screaming obscenities at a woman. The woman then spit in the man’s face, and the man started throwing punches.
Another man entered the fray and, in the course of the next five minutes, several other people, all believed to be members of the competing families, were tussling with one another. Passersby, meanwhile, tried their best to get themselves and their children out of the way. Others stood and watched. One person, on an electric scooter, tried to get in between the brawlers, and for her effort, was knocked to the ground, before passersby helped her up.
At some point, one of the combatants could be seen attempting to drag a woman across the pavement by her hair; that’s when observers tried to intervene. Then, Disneyland security arrived and broke up the fight.
The entire incident was caught on video, which you can see below. Be warned, however, that this video contains violent content and strong language, which may be disturbing to some viewers.
https://youtu.be/7RBWuYFeg9Y
At first, according to Los Angeles’ KABC-TV , Anaheim police weren’t going to pursue criminal charges, due to both sets of brawlers being “uncooperative.” However, once video of the brawl reached social media on Sunday, police had enough evidence that they can now pursue a criminal case, which they say will be happening. It remains unclear, as of this writing, if any arrests have been made.
Meanwhile, the two families were both escorted away from the property.
The Walt Disney Company refused to comment on the matter, beyond a brief statement saying that they don’t “condone this behavior.”
Although Disney security, as well as security personnel at other theme parks, do their best to keep things under control, sometimes people’s emotions get the better of them in the crowded and uncomfortable conditions that can be present at theme parks. A simple search of “Disneyland fight” or “Disney world fight,” for example, leads to dozens of results on YouTube. Fortunately, most such fights are broken up by security as soon as they begin.