Sesame Place is trending on Twitter after an outraged Black mother took to social media to blast the Philadelphia location on Sunday (July 17). The mother, identified as Jodi on Instagram, uploaded a video of the character, Rosita, saying no to her two daughters, who excitedly reached out for a high-five. Before avoiding contact with the girls, Rosita can be seen high-fiving two other children and a white woman. Jodi claims Rosita went on to high-five “the little white girl next to us” in her rant.
She wrote, “I’m going to keep posting this, because this had me hot. We were on our way out of Sesame Place and the kids wanted to stop to see the characters. THIS DISGUSTING person blatantly told our kids NO then proceeded to hug the little white girl next to us!” The riled mother said she unsuccessfully attempted to file a complaint with management. Jodi’s post continued, “They looking at me like I’m crazy. I asked the lady who the character was and I wanted to see a supervisor and she told me SHE DIDNT KNOW!! I will never step foot in @sesameplace ever again! And please feel free to repost this. Actually run me my money back so mad I stopped the video but it got me so mad when he blatantly told them no.”
Social media users were equally outraged by the footage and argued that race played a factor in this incident. One user tweeted, “I use to work at Sesame Place and the people there were just racially insensitive and only liked me because *Token friend *I’m mixed so I was the ‘safest’ option An awful place and wouldn’t put it past anyone who works here to do this.”
The theme park released a statement claiming Rosita’s “no” gesture was “a response to multiple requests from someone in the crowd who asked Rosita to hold their child for a photo which is not permitted.” But supporters on social media weren’t buying this excuse. Another person tweeted, “The look of hurt on those innocent faces when that Sesame Place character ignored those two girls. Racism starts early and the world is constantly reminding you that you’re less than. I really hope that this will not weaken their self esteem. They need to be loved on.”
I use to work at Sesame Place and the people there were just racially insensitive and only liked me because *Token friend
*I'm mixed so I was the "safest" option
An awful place and wouldn't put it past anyone who works here to do this https://t.co/7ShdI8Jwbt— Pancake Mafia (@PancakeMafia1) July 18, 2022
Kelly Rowland even shared her take on the matter. She posted a video on her Instagram Story saying, “Okay, so, had that been me? That whole parade would have been in flames. Like, are you serious? You’re not gonna speak to my child? And did you see that baby’s face at the end? The little one with the pink on? She deserves an explanation. Hello!” Other families began sharing footage of similar experiences at Sesame Place. Check out what Black Twitter had to say about the ordeal:
So apparently the Sesame Place has a history of ignoring black kids… Here's a thread of the proof. pic.twitter.com/jblam47HHn
— My Hair Longer Than Yours… (@_TheShawn) July 18, 2022
Bogus ass apology! Just white splaining and trying to give cover to racist employee that hi-5 white people and clearly saw 2 Black children and refused to hi-5 them!
Fuck sesame place#BoycottSesamePlace https://t.co/KGGb4zs3FH
— LilMissFirecrackerReloaded (@LilMissfirecra5) July 18, 2022
As a former costume character at Six Flags and 5’7’, I didn’t have issues seeing kids at the “lower levels” & that was in Porky the Pig, Tweety plus Daffy Duck. So, I’m curious why & how Sesame Place thought this added to the discussion?🫤 #SesamePlace #Philadelphia https://t.co/SrtKo58ZtB
— ShakariSBriggs (@ShakariSBriggs) July 18, 2022
This is so disgusting but never surprising when it comes to our children. Whoever is in this "Rosita" costume needs to be fired. I don't know if a racist or a c☻️☻️n is in this costume, but Sesame Place has some splanin', firing and apologizing to do. #BoycottSesamePlace pic.twitter.com/magSNsoLGj
— Nicole's View 🇺🇲 (@BLKLiberation84) July 18, 2022
It's upsetting because no matter what damage control is attempted by Sesame Place, nothing can undo how these babies were made to feel in this moment. The looks on their faces are so heartbreaking. https://t.co/orkTmnwbaF
— krh (@kyiarenee) July 17, 2022
the thing with that Sesame Place incident that i haven’t seen anyone bring is people are saying “maybe hugs weren’t allowed” but even if you couldn’t give the kids a hug, why not just offer up a high five instead? it’s so fucking simple
— kyla! (@YellowSeizuress) July 17, 2022
Fuck Sesame Place. Fuck Rosita. And fuck anybody that doesn’t have a problem with that video. Protect little Black kids from foul treatment by the whack ass people under these costumes. Call their asses out every time.
— Somebody’s Fine Mama 💋🫶🏾 (@BombshellCole) July 17, 2022
Idk what attention you haven’t been getting , that you needed to be an idiot an tweet some bs. But damn this is crazy. Clearly the other child never did. Unless you were there. You the sesame place protocol expert? Weirdo https://t.co/23LiCHEdcT
— C diddy (@Donlesuave) July 18, 2022
Sesame Place is NOT owned/ran by Sesame Workshop. @SesameWorkshop should look into pulling the license from Sea World (the aquatic animal torture co) for hurting their brand.
Maybe give the Sesame Street theme park license to Disney or Universal. #FBA pic.twitter.com/Emo6Z29qs8
— PrometheusRisesAgain (@prometheus50K) July 18, 2022
Children can develop feelings of not being good enough very early on. That Sesame Place incident is a prime example of how it could happen. I pray those babies’ self esteem was not damaged by that awful person. They will have the memories of this moment forever.
— Somebody’s Fine Mama 💋🫶🏾 (@BombshellCole) July 17, 2022