PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A woman on Instagram has sparked outrage with a viral video, which she says shows a Sesame Street character at Sesame Place in Langhorne, Bucks County, blow off two little girls. The park first said the incident was a misunderstanding, but she didn't buy it. The park followed later with a direct, public apology.
A woman using the Instagram handle __jodiii__ shared the video below. She says she brought two young Black girls to Sesame Place on Saturday. They were waiting for a performer playing the character Rosita, who was walking toward them. One girl appeared to be asking for a high five, while the other apparently wanted a hug.
In the video, the performer is seen high-fiving a child and an adult. The performer then shakes their head “no” and waves a finger at someone else in the crowd. Then, near the girls, the performer seems to tilt the costume’s head downward and shake it to express “no,” then waves a hand goodbye, and walks on past them.
“This had me hot,” __jodiii__ said on her Instagram post.
“This disgusting person blatantly told our kids no, then proceeded to hug the little white girl next to us!”
Her video does not show the costumed performer giving anyone a hug, though __jodiii__ said she had stopped recording when she became angry over the situation.
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Sesame Place released a statement saying the performer portraying Rosita was not intentionally snubbing the girls, and that performers playing particular characters sometimes have a hard time seeing smaller fans because of the limited range of vision inside their costumes.
They said the costumed person was responding to someone else in the crowd who asked multiple times for Rosita to hold their child for a photo, which is not allowed.
Sesame Place also said they have invited the girls back to the park for a special meet-and-greet with the characters.
"I wholeheartedly feel as though that statement was released to save face," said __jodiii__in an Instagram story after the statement was posted.
She said that Sesame Place should have given a public apology to the girls, calling the statement "disrespectful and distasteful. Talking about adding insult to injury."
She also questioned whether the performer could not see the girls, saying the character "looked at them and said no."
Sesame Place Philadelphia issued a second apology on Monday night, saying they "sincerely apologize to the family for their experience in our park on Saturday."
They added that they will "conduct training for our employees so they better understand, recognize and deliver an inclusive, equitable and entertaining experience to our guests."