A Maryland father accused SeaWold of “pervasive and appalling” discrimination at its Sesame Street themed park in Philadelphia in a federal lawsuit July 27, days after a viral video appeared to show a person dressed as the character Rosita ignoring two Black girls at the park, reports NBC BLK.
The suit, filed in Pennsylvania’s Eastern District Court, seeks class action status, alleging that when the plaintiff, Quinton Burns, took his child to the park on June 18, they tried to participate in a “Meet and Greet” with people dressed as Elmo, Ernie, Telly Monster and Abby Cadabby. The suit accuses the characters of “Intentionally” refusing to engage with the child, who is identified in the lawsuit as KB, and ignoring other Black guests while performing for White people.
“Racism is horrible when it’s perpetrated against adults, but it’s in a separate category of horror when it’s perpetrated against kids,” said William Murphy, an attorney representing the family.
The lawsuit seeks $25 million in damages, and the plaintiffs also want the park to implement mandatory cultural sensitivity training and classes in the history of discrimination.
