Credit: LEGOLANDLEGOLAND has been hit with a lawsuit after a family alleged that a costumed character discriminated against black children.
In 2022, one Maryland family made headlines when they filed a $25 million lawsuit against Sesame Place Philadelphia after alleging that multiple costumed characters ignored their five-year-old Black daughter – plus other Black guests – during their visit to the Pennsylvania theme park.
Sesame Place later issued a statement insisting that the park and its employees support “inclusivity and equality in all forms.” When videos circulated on social media of characters seemingly ignoring Black children, Sesame Place claimed that the employee “did not intentionally ignore the girls and is devastated by the misunderstanding,” as well as explaining that the costumes make it tough to see guests of that height.
Fast forward two years, and another incident has sparked a different family to file their own lawsuit – this time, against LEGOLAND New York.
Breana Ramsay and her sister-in-law, Shaquana Williams, visited the park in June 2022, when News 8 reports that they experienced alleged racial discrimination after costumed characters did not interact with Ramsay’s two-year-old daughter and 4-year-old nephew.
“The characters can be seen purposefully avoiding and walking around the Black children, including the plaintiffs, to avoid having to dance with them and instead dancing with white children,” the lawsuit alleges. It also claims that the incident has had a long-lasting effect on the children involved, requiring therapy amid questions of why the LEGOLAND characters did not like them.
“The car ride was sad,” Ramsay said. “My nephew was like, ‘Why wouldn’t they dance with me?’ and we were trying to explain the situation without making him feel bad.”
As per the recently filed lawsuit, the party seeks $1 million in damages. Their attorney, Darnell Crosland, reveals that the company ignored an initial request to meet and discuss what happened and also ignored their request for a full refund.
“We sent them a letter in August of 2022 and said this was unacceptable, demanding a refund and a meeting about what happened, and they ignored us like they ignored the kids,” said Crosland.
According to Crosland, research determined that this wasn’t an isolated incident at LEGOLAND. “We’ve collected data upon data of different incidents that I’ve paid for from my office to see if this is real, and it continues to happen,” he said.
LEGOLAND has since issued a written statement to News 8 about the situation:
We are committed to fostering an open, inclusive, and safe environment where all our guests feel valued. As this matter is currently under litigation, we are unable to provide further details and will respect the legal process.
Ramsay added that her children still frequently ask to return to LEGOLAND – which also boasts locations in California, Florida, the UK, Denmark (the original LEGOLAND theme park) and beyond – but that they will not be returning.
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