Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

'The Telegraph' Sparks Outrage With Headline Decrying 'Woke' LEGOs That Depict Disabled People

A racially diverse group of 8 LEGO characters are arranged as if posing for a picture, with 6 standing and 2 sitting down in front of the rest of the group.
LEGO

The U.K. newspaper eventually changed an ableist headline calling LEGO 'woke' for introducing new figurines that depict people with Down Syndrome and limb differences after a flurry of backlash.

Make us preferred on Google

British news outlet The Telegraph is under fire after it published an article decrying LEGO as "woke" because the company released a new line of LEGO Friends Minifigures of children with various visible and invisible disabilities.

The Telegraph put out an article criticizing LEGO for the inclusion with the headline:


"Lego goes 'woke' as new figures released with Down's syndrome and missing limbs"

tweet from @mimmymum with a screenshot of the story from The Telegraph with the caption "This was the Telegraph headline \u2014calling representation of disabled people 'woke' \u2014 before the disability charity @scope asked them to change it! Right-wing media are so desperate to vilify organisations supporting minority inclusion, they've lost any sense of humanity! [Disappointed Face Emoji]"@mimmymum/Twitter

Disability rights group Scope—as well as plenty of others—quickly called out The Telegraph and article author Nick Squires on Twitter.

Scope asked:

"Why are you so against disabled children being able to see themselves reflected in their toys? Don't they deserve the right to play?"

They also noted:

"Weaponising disabled representation like this is hugely damaging."

The Telegraph eventually changed the headline, but it was concerning it was ever published in the first place.

Other Twitter users were also incredulous at The Telegraph headline's audacity.

A tweet from @DrFrancesRyan with a screenshot showing an article from The Telegraph and the sarcastic caption "Thoughts and prayers to The Telegraph who are angry about *checks notes* disabled children having toys that make them feel good. Good to take those entitled b******s down a notch!"@DrFrancesRyan/Twitter



@adamhillscomedy/Twitter

@adamhillscomedy/Twitter

Others were just glad to see LEGO making an effort to acknowledge disabled children and help them see themselves in their toys.


The Telegraph wasn't alone in calling out Lego for going "woke" by including disabled people in their Friends line of products.

Fox News' Harris Faulkner did a segment claiming the Lego company based in Denmark was pushing identity politics on behalf of Democrats to attack Republicans.

The Young Turks skewered Fox for their latest outrage in a segment you can see here:

youtu.be

According to LEGO's press release, they definitely didn't make this decision randomly.

Or in relation to any politics.

Lego conducted a thorough investigation of what kids actually want.

"Because the LEGO Group values children as its role models, this next generation of LEGO Friends has implemented input from kid testing, research and feedback from letters sent to the company, which all found children had a desire to see themselves, their friends and their families better represented."

Their findings were honestly encouraging for the future.

Kids want their toys to be more diverse and reflective of real kids and for the world, in general, to be more equitable.

"The research also found that 3 in 4 (73%) children felt that there were not enough toys with characters that represented them and similarly, that 8 in 10 (80%) children would like there to be more toys with characters who look like them."
"Moreover, children themselves are asking for a fairer, more equitable world with 9 out of 10 (91%) saying they care about everyone being treated equally."

They said of the new toy line:

"The brand-new universe of authentic, interesting, passionate, and diverse characters includes additions of multiple skin tones, cultures, physical and non-visible disabilities, and neurodiversity."
"The new sets and series will feature characters with limb difference, Downs [sic] Syndrome, anxiety, vitiligo, and a dog with a wheelchair."

It's not just visible representation either.

The characters' storylines were written to reflect what life is really like for disabled kids.

"The new friends also explore and work to overcome modern challenges that they face, passions, obstacles, and differences, all while trying to create friendships."

LEGO is far from the only toy manufacturer moving to be more inclusive in their toys.

So, if The Telegraph is truly bothered by diversity in children's toys, they'd better be ready to be really, really upset.

More from Trending

Patrick Stewart
Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Tributes Pour In For 'Star Trek' And 'X-Men' Icon Patrick Stewart After His Death At 86

On Thursday, people received the news of the passing of lauded stage, TV, and screen actor Sir Patrick Stewart. Already an accomplished actor in his beloved Britain, in 1987 Sir Patrick gained international fame as he joined Starfleet and the Star Trek universe for the first new television series since 1969.

For the next seven seasons, Captain Jean-Luc Picard would command the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D) on Star Trek: The Next Generation on the small screen, then follow as it made the leap to the silver screen where Stewart would play the role for four feature films. He would don the uniform again for his own series, Picard, for three seasons.

Keep ReadingShow less
Jesse Ventura; Donald Trump
KSTP-TV; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Jesse Ventura Brutally Rips 'Coward' Trump For Avoiding Military Service After Trump Touts Himself As Great Military Leader

Minneapolis-born ex-pro-wrestler and former Reform Party Governor of Minnesota Jesse Ventura minced no words when he shared how he feels about MAGA Republican President Donald Trump.

Once rumored to be a potential running mate for the former reality star President, Ventura has been a very vocal critic of Trump for some time.

Keep ReadingShow less

Robert Irwin Hilariously Mortified After Prince William Makes 'Python' Joke About His Racy Photoshoot

Prince William has a sense of humor. I know. I'm processing this information, too.

The future king made an unexpected detour into comedy during The Graham Norton Show, where Robert Irwin's infamous underwear photoshoot became the evening's main attraction. Unfortunately for Irwin, William had questions. Well, more like observations.

Keep ReadingShow less
TikToker @kori_latham; Luke Skywalker from 'Star Wars'
@kori_latham/TikTok; Disney/LucasFilm

TikTok Mom's Church Outfit Gets Hilariously Roasted By Her 10-Year-Old With Brutal 'Star Wars' Comparison

There's nothing like finding an outfit that you love and feel really confident in, only to realize that you bear an uncanny resemblance to a popular film's costume stylings.

And that's exactly what happened to TikToker @kori_latham, who was getting dressed for church.

Keep ReadingShow less
Newborn baby with full mustache
@MarioNawfal/X

Viral Video Of Newborn Baby Allegedly Born With Full Mustache Sparks Flurry Of Hilarious Jokes

Some people are born to make an entrance—but one baby took that so seriously that he immediately became an internet meme when he was born, thanks to rocking a full mustache.

Parents are typically "warned" about little "abnormalities" they might notice when their babies are born, like birthmarks, a lot of hair on their head, no hair on their head, different eye colors, and maybe even a little facial hair.

Keep ReadingShow less