PHILADELPHIA — Sesame Place offered a new apology to the family of the two young Black girls who were seemingly snubbed by a costumed character at the park, this time saying they “wholeheartedly apologize” and renewing a pledge to institute mandatory diversity training.
Last weekend, an employee dressed as the turquoise Muppet Rosita was recorded appearing to refuse to high-five two 6-year-old Black girls during a parade at Sesame Place in Langhorne. The video, recorded by Jodi Brown, spread on social media and prompted calls to boycott Sesame Place and for an explanation from the company.
The nine-second clip shows the mascot waving at and high-fiving a few people and then apparently waving off the two girls who had outstretched hands. Brown said that she was outraged by the experience her daughter and niece went through and hired a lawyer, B’Ivory LaMarr, to represent them.
LaMarr, on behalf of Brown and the girls, called on the company to issue a formal apology and to fire the employee who allegedly snubbed the girls.
On Thursday night, Sesame Place issued the fresh apology and said they had been in touch with Brown and LaMarr and were planning to meet to apologize in person and to listen to the family’s experience and work toward fixing the park for good.
“We sincerely and wholeheartedly apologize to the Brown family for what they experienced,” Sesame Place said in the statement. “To be very clear, what the two young girls experienced, what the family experienced, is unacceptable. It happened in our park, with our team, and we own that. It is our responsibility to make this better for the children and the family and to be better for all families.”
At a Wednesday news conference in New York, Lamarr and activist Tamika Mallory of Until Freedom had called for the employee donning the turquoise costume to be fired. The Thursday statement from Sesame Place did not indicate whether the employee was facing termination or discipline.
The company said it was trying to set up a meeting so the family could tell their story of what happened that day and the company could use it to learn and improve.
“We want to listen to them to understand how the experience impacted their family and to understand what we can do better for them and all guests who visit our parks,” the company said.
Sesame Place is owned and operated by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, but the park’s use of the characters is through a license with Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit responsible for the long-running TV show Sesame Street.
On Sunday, Sesame Place Philadelphia posted an apology saying its brand stood for “inclusivity and equality in all forms” and explaining that costumes sometimes made it hard for performers to see hug requests. The company also said the employee seen in the video explained the “no” gesture was directed at someone who asked them to carry their child. Carrying a child is against the park rules.
At a Wednesday news conference, Lamarr said he had video evidence that contradicted those initial claims. The attorney said he would give the company a chance to fix the problem before releasing the video.
On Monday, Sesame Place Philadelphia followed up with another apology, saying the company knew that the incident was “not ok” and it would conduct employee training to improve inclusivity and equitability.
Sesame Place on Thursday said it would institute mandatory training for all employees to “deliver an inclusive, equitable and entertaining experience” and that it had begun speaking with experts in the field.
“We take this extremely seriously; we are heartbroken by what these young girls and this family experienced in our park,” the company said. “We are committed to working tirelessly and intentionally to make this situation better. We will do the necessary work for the long haul — not just in the public eye, but also behind the scenes and within ourselves.”
