Sesame Place controversy: Attorney says family is "tired of talking" after SeaWorld CEO didn't attend scheduled meeting this week
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The family of two young Black girls that appeared to be snubbed by a costumed character at Sesame Place in Bucks County earlier this year says all options are on the table after the CEO of SeaWorld didn't attend a meeting this week, the family's lawyer said in a release on Friday. The CEO of SeaWorld, the parent company of Sesame Place, was supposed to meet with Jodi Brown in her family on Tuesday, but the CEO didn't show, according to a release.
The CEO allegedly promised in August that a meeting with the Brown family would eventually be held.
Instead, only legal counsel and corporate reps were sent to the meeting.
Now, the attorney for the family says they're "tired of talking."
"To appease the Brown family and the community at large, we were presented with the illusion that SeaWorld Entertainment wanted to "do right" and mediate the matter; however, what was labeled a mediation this week, shifted to a meeting where the Browns were finally able to voice their concerns and then offered a sandwich and cookies," B'lovory LaMarr, the attorney representing Brown's family, wrote in a release.
In the release, LaMarr said that they're monitoring the ongoing $25 million lawsuit filed against SeaWorld by another firm and that all other options are on the table.
LaMarr also wrote in the release that SeaWorld hasn't provided an update on if the employee in the Rosita costume that appeared to snub the two young girls in the video has been disciplined or terminated.
In August, Rev. Jesse Jackson and attorneys for the Brown family met with the Sesame Place CEO due to the video.
In July, a video went viral showing the Sesame Street character Rosita appearing to wave off two Black girls during a parade at Sesame Place. Brown posted the video of her daughter and niece, and soon others said they had similar experiences.
Since the incident, Sesame Place announced mandatory diversity and inclusion training for all of its employees. The training is supposed to address bias and prevent discrimination.
Besides anti-discrimination training, the families also want to see changes to Sesame Place's hiring practices and set aside part of its budget to be spent exclusively on African American businesses.
"After nearly two months of engagement, it has become evident and we believe that the leadership at SeaWorld Entertainment does not respect the political power of African-American civil rights leaders and their outreach within the community," LaMarr said in a release. "We further believe that they do not respect the African-American dollars that help make SeaWorld and Sesame Place profitable."