Rev. Jesse Jackson Sends Letter To Sesame Place, Shares Ideas To End Racial Discrimination Amid Recent Controversy 

Rev. Jesse Jackson Sends Letter To Sesame Place, Ideas To End Racial Discrimination Amid Recent Controversy

It looks like Rev. Jesse Jackson is stepping up and getting involved in the recent Sesame Place racial discrimination controversy!

According to reports, the political/civil rights activist is curating solutions that will make the theme park more comfortable and enjoyable for black children. Jesse Jackson, 80, suggests that SeaWorld– which owns Sesame Place Philadelphia– should bring in African-Americans to their board of directors, spend money on Black-owned businesses and hire an African-American firm to handle cultural sensitivity training for staff.

Jesse Jackson

Initially following the public outrage surrounding the incident, Sesame Place seemingly tried to deny claims of racism within the park. However, as more videos came out from black families with similar stories, the theme park issued another statement promising to train their staff better. But it seems like that apology came a little too late.

On Wednesday, (July 27) the Burns family– a different family than the one seen in the viral video– filed a class action lawsuit against Sesame Place for the discrimination they allegedly experienced while visiting the park. According to the suit, the Maryland family is claiming that during their own trip to the infamous theme park on June 18, 5-year-old Kennedi Burns, who is black, was purposely ignored by four Sesame Place characters. The suit adds that the characters had no issue interacting with white families/children.