- A viral video of the Rosita character at Sesame Place visibly dismissing two Black girls has sparked outrage online.
- The family is now calling on the theme park to fire the costumed performer, according to a press conference with their attorney held on Wednesday.
- No lawsuit has been filed yet, but “all options are on the table,” the family’s lawyer B’Ivory LaMarr said.
Outrage has spread across the nation after a viral video showed a costumed performer at Sesame Place visibly dismiss two 6-year-old Black girls on Saturday. Now, the family is calling on the theme park to fire the employee.
In the video, posted to Instagram by Jodi Brown, “Sesame Street” character Rosita is shown high-fiving a white child and woman – but then gesturing “no” and walking away from Brown’s daughter and niece, who had their arms stretched out for a hug and high-five during the parade at Sesame Place in Langhorne, outside Philadelphia.
“THIS DISGUSTING person blatantly told our kids NO then proceeded to hug the little white girl next to us! Then when I went to complain about it, they looking at me like I’m crazy,” Brown wrote in her Saturday post. “I will never step foot in @sesameplace ever again.”
In a Wednesday press conference held near Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit behind “Sesame Street,” in New York, the family’s legal team said that they were calling for the immediate firing of the employee who dismissed the two girls.
This week:Sesame Place park apologies after Rosita character appeared to dismiss two Black girls
“Today is a day of accountability,” the family’s lawyer, Houston-based trial attorney B’Ivory LaMarr, said to reporters. “What has taken place at Sesame Place this past Saturday, and the months and years prior, is utterly disgusting and unacceptable.”
LaMarr’s law office confirmed to USA TODAY Thursday morning that LaMarr had communicated with the counsel for Sesame Place, but that no lawsuit has been filed yet. Updates are expected in the coming days.
“All options are on the table,” LaMarr said Wednesday, adding that “The last thing we want to do is file a lawsuit… This is not about money, but they do need to take responsibility and make sure these girls get the adequate care that they deserve.”
For now, the family’s attorney said Wednesday, they are calling on Sesame Place to fire the employee, take care of the health and mental health expenses for the two girls following the incident and issue a “genuine and authentic” apology – not a “watered-down” explanation.
In an initial statement shared on social media Sunday, Sesame Place said the park and its employees stand for “inclusivity and equality in all forms” and that the “costumes our performers wear sometimes make it difficult to see at lower levels and sometimes our performers miss hug requests from guests.”
Sesame Place added: “The Rosita performer did not intentionally ignore the girls and is devastated by the misunderstanding.”
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Still, many expressed outrage online – with some calling for a boycott of the amusement park. On Monday, the park issued a second statement, apologizing again and promising that it was “taking action to do better.” That action would include inclusivity training for employees, the park said.
“We reject any notion that the performer’s actions this past Saturday was anything short of intentional. I know our Black girls are magic, but I didn’t know that they were invisible. We are tired of your excuses, we are tired of justifications,” LaMarr said on Wednesday in response to Sesame Place’s statements. “We will not tolerate racism in this country… we most definitely will not tolerate it in our theme parks directed at our children.”
Brown and activist Tamika Mallory, co-founder of social-justice organization Until Freedom who also participated in Wednesday’s press conference, strongly criticized Sesame Street’s apologies for not taking further responsibility, too.
“I feel like the apologies were not genuine,” Brown, who attended the press conference with her niece Nylah, added on Wednesday. “Me, my niece and my daughter have all suffered… discriminatory behavior which we should not have to endure in these days and times.”
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Mallory said Sesame Place’s statements showed “gaslighting and complete disrespect.” She also called on SeaWorld, who owns and operates the Sesame Place theme park, to speak up and take action.
USA TODAY reached out to both Sesame Place and SeaWorld for additional comments on Thursday.
In addition to what the Brown family experienced on Saturday, LaMarr said Wednesday, his office – as well as Mallory’s office and the office of civil rights lawyer Ben Crump – has since received numerous reports from families who say they have experienced similar, racist incidents at the theme park over the years, from various costumed characters.
“We’ve come to learn that what took place Saturday is not an anomaly, but what we’ve seen is business as usual – to deny, to defend and to delay accountability,” LaMarr said.
Contributing: The Associated Press.
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