Kelly Rowland Is ‘So Mad’ After Seeing Video of Muppet Appearing to Ignore 2 Black Girls at Sesame Place

  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

No, no, no! Kelly Rowland is mad, and she’s speaking out. After a video in which it appears the Sesame Street character Rosita ignores two little Black girls at Sesame Place went viral, the Destiny’s Child singer is sharing her ire.

Rowland first reshared the clip to her Instagram Stories on Sunday (July 17), and wrote, “OH HELL NAWWW!!” In her following Stories, she shared a video message captioned, “TF! This just made me so mad!”

More from Billboard

“OK, so had that been me, that whole parade would’ve been in flames,” Rowland says angrily in her clip. “Are you serious?! You’re not going to 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!”

In the video shared on Instagram July 16 by a woman who goes by the username __jodiii__, two little Black girls reach out excitedly to the character Rosita at Sesame Street’s Langhorne, Penn., theme park as she walks toward them, high-fiving with the white attendees standing ahead of the girls. When Rosita reaches the two little girls, who are reaching out to her, the Muppet shakes her head and gestures “no” before walking away, leaving a disappointed look on one of the little girl’s faces.

“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 user captioned her video. “Then when I went to complain about it, they looking at me like I’m crazy.”

“Then when I went to complain about it, 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 !!” she continued. “I will never step foot in @sesameplace ever again.”

Sesame Place shared a statement on its Instagram account July 17 after the video went viral.

“Our brand, our park and our employees stand for inclusivity and equality in all fo rms. That is what Sesame Place is all about and we do not tolerate any behaviors in our parks that are contrary to that commitment,” the theme park began its statement, noting that it tries to make sure everyone has a great time. “Regarding the incident yesterday, the costumes our performers wear sometimes make it difficult to see at lower levels and sometimes our performers miss hug requests from guests.”

The statement went on to say that the person in the Rosita costume said that the “no” gesture was “not directed at any specific person,” but was instead “a response to multiple requests from someone in the crowd who asked Rosita to hold their child for a photo which is not permitted.” Sesame Place also said in its statement that the employee in the costume “did not intentionally ignore the girls and is devastated about the misunderstanding.”

Sesame Place’s statement concluded by noting that it had reached out to apologize to the family and invite them back for a “special meet-and-greet opportunity.”

See Sesame Place’s full statement below:

Later on Monday, Sesame Place Philadelphia shared a new statement with Billboard. “We sincerely apologize to the family for their experience in our park on Saturday; we know that it’s not OK. We are taking actions to do better. We are committed to making this right,” the park said. “We will conduct training for our employees so they better understand, recognize and deliver an inclusive, equitable and entertaining experience to our guests. For over 40 years Sesame Place has worked to uphold the values of respect, inclusion and belonging. We are committed to doing a better job making children and families feel special, seen and included when they come to our parks.”

Click here to read the full article.