“It told my son to put a slave cuff around the black character’s neck, and then to play with the toy.”
A mother was furious after spending the weekend putting together her five-year-old’s new toy only to discover that the pirate ship came complete with slaves.
Ida Lockett complained to Playmobil, the company responsible for the set, on discovering that it contained a dark-skinned figurine with no shoes, tattered pants and a neck piece that appears to be a slave collar.
If there was any doubt, the toy was accompanied by a set of instructions explaining how to fit the accessory around its neck.
“It’s definitely racist,” Lockett told local CBS TV. “It told my son to put a slave cuff around the black character’s neck, and then to play with the toy.”
“You cannot have this specific accessory and call it anything else,” she said.
“The fact that you can Google it, look it up, say what it is – it’s a slave collar.”
Lockett posted an image of the offending item on Facebook, describing the ship as a “slave ship”.
After the post caused a furore on social, Playmobil responded with a non-apology, defending the toy for its historical accuracy — apparently it was intended to portray life on a 17th-century pirate ship.
In a statement to the Washington Post, the company said: “If you look at the box, you can see that the pirate figure is clearly a crew member on the pirate ship and not a captive.
Top Comments
The word 'racist' has lost its meaning.
Whether you like it or not it is accurate. You not liking something does not make it racist.
No its not racist but it's also something that is serious and not really appropriate for play.
Nor is cop & ROBBERS but it's a staple of most kids play. How about pirates? Where do you draw the line?