Sesame Place to Ramp Up Anti-Bias Training After Controversy

Sesame Place in Pennsylvania announced a series of actions Tuesday aimed at bolstering diversity and inclusion education among its employees on the heels of a viral video showing a character denying an interaction to two young Black girls at the park.

In a news release, the Langhorne amusement site said it will be conducting a “racial equity assessment” of the park including a review of park policies and practices to identify opportunities for improvement. 

The park also said all employees will participate in anti-bias training and education to address bias, promote inclusion, prevent discrimination and cultivate a welcoming environment for all guests. 

Employees are set to complete training by the end of September 2022, the park said. 

“This training will be incorporated into the onboarding of all new employees and will become a regular part of our training and workforce development,” the park added. 

Nationally recognized civil rights experts will also oversee the initiative and monitor the park’s progress toward its inclusion goals, with notable members to include Debo P. Adegbile, the Chair of the Anti-Discrimination Practice at WilmerHale LLP and a Commissioner on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; Joseph West, the current co-chair of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer at DuaneMorris and Sadiqa Reynolds, the longtime leader of the Louisville Urban League and incoming CEO of Perception Institute.

Attorney B’Ivory LaMarr, who represents the family said "we acknowledge SeaWorld’s recent response to the public demands made by Rainbow PUSH, NAACP, Until Freedom, and others, that stemmed from the July 16th incident at Sesame Place in Langhorne, PA.

"On Thursday, August 11^th, the parents of Skylar and Nylah will accompany me to a meeting with SeaWorld’s CEO, Marc Swanson, along with Rev. Jesse Jackson, and other leaders. It is our hope that this previously scheduled meeting will address the deficiencies we have noted from this most recent press release. We will provide a more detailed statement following this meeting."

In the now viral video posted last month on the mother’s Instagram account, two young girls are seen excitedly reaching out to the character Rosita, the first bilingual muppet on Sesame Street. 

Although it appears that the performer had interacted with other children before reaching the girls, the video seems to show the character shaking their head “no” in the direction of the two young Black girls.  

In response, Sesame Place Philadelphia said in a statement on Instagram that it the performer did not direct the “no” hand gesture, which was used more than once in the video, toward “any specific person,” but was instead gesturing that way in “response to multiple requests from someone in the crowd who asked Rosita to hold their child for a photo which is not permitted.” 

It added that the performer "is devastated about the misunderstanding" and noted the costumes its performers wear “sometimes make it difficult to see at lower levels” and that sometimes “performers miss hug requests from guests.”  

In a later statement, the park said "we are committed to making this right. We will conduct training for our employees so they better understand, recognize and deliver an inclusive, equitable and entertaining experience to our guests.”

Other videos have surfaced on social media claiming similar incidents at Sesame Place in the past. A separate family has filed a lawsuit against Sesame Place, seeking at least $25 million in damages from SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment – which owns Sesame Place – on behalf of all Black people who visited Sesame Place since July 27, 2018, and “suffered disparate treatment” from SeaWorld employees who ignored Black children “while interacting with similarly situated white children.”  

"We are pleased to have this team of well-respected leaders joining us. We have already begun engaging with employees, guests, civil rights groups as well as community leaders, and instituted some interim measures at the park while the review proceeds,” Sesame Place Philadelphia President Cathy Valeriano said in a Tuesday statement. 

“The actions we are taking will help us deliver on our promise to provide an equitable and inclusive experience for all our guests every day,” Valeriano added.