A family from Baltimore filed a class-action racial discrimination lawsuit Wednesday against Sesame Place in Bucks County, Pennsylvania
Murphy, Falcon and Murphy, the law firm representing the family, is suing the amusement park, alleging staff refused to interact with Quinton Burns' 5-year-old daughter during a meet-and-greet with characters on June 18.
Attorney Billy Murphy said the family was wronged.
“In many ways, parents have been injured more grievously because they understand the full impact that this has had on the children,” he said.
This incident is separate from the most recent video that went viral of two Black girls being ignored by one of the characters during a visit on July 16.
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The initial video of that encounter showed Rosita high-fiving a white child, but then making a “no” gesture to Jodi Brown's daughter and niece, who are Black.
Sesame Place said the gesture was meant for someone behind the 6-year-old Black girls, who wanted the character to hold a child. Park performers are not permitted to hold children.
Sesame Place apologized in a statement and promised more training for its employees after the video went viral earlier this month.
Attorney Malcolm Ruff believes the Sesame Place employees should feel shame.
“We saw … utter disgust as the viral videos of these beloved Sesame Street characters who were discriminating against these innocent Black children,” said Ruff.
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The suit, which seeks class-action status, was filed in a federal court in Philadelphia against SeaWorld Parks, the owner of the Sesame Place, for “pervasive and appalling race discrimination.”
The lawsuit alleges four employees dressed as Sesame Street characters ignored Quinton Burns, his daughter Kennedi Burns and other Black guests during the meet-and-greet on June 18. The lawsuit says “SeaWorld's performers readily engaged with numerous similarly situated white customers.”
Those involved in the suit are seeking upward of $25 million in damages. The suit also calls for Sesame Place to implement cultural sensitivity training.