LEGO has pledged to donate $4 million in the fight against racism. They have also asked retailers to stop marketing products involving police officers.
What We Know:
- LEGO will donate $4 million to organizations supporting Black children and educating children about racial equality. The company has not yet disclosed which organizations they will be donating to.
- A LEGO spokesperson told The Toy Book, “We requested that our affiliate partners refrain from posting promotional LEGO content as part of our decision to respect #BlackOutTuesday and pause posting content on our social media channels in response to the tragic events in the US. We regret any misunderstanding and will ensure that we are clearer about our intentions in the future.”
- The different types of toy sets that will be removed include the LEGO City Police Station, Fire Station, Police Dog Unit, Patrol Car, Fire Plane, Mobile Command Center, Police Highway Arrest and City Donut Shop Opening Set. These sets include police officers, firefighters, criminals and emergency vehicles. All of these products are still listed on the LEGO website.
- LEGO issued a statement reading, “We stand together with the Black community against racism and inequality. There’s so much to do.”
- LEGO tweeted that allegations that they were removing these products are false. Instead LEGO says its intentions were not to stop selling these products but to pause digital advertising due to the events happening in the world today.
We’ve seen incorrect reports saying we’ve removed some LEGO sets from sale. To be clear, that is not the case and reports otherwise are false. Our intention was to temporarily pause digital advertising in response to events in the US. We hope this clears things up. ♥️
— LEGO (@LEGO_Group) June 4, 2020
- LEGO is not the only company who has acted in support of the protests and the Black Lives Matter movement. The Pokeman Company has pledged to donate $200,000 to be divided between Black Lives Matter and the NAACP, Brooklyn NIne-Nine cast has donated $100,000 to the National Bail Fund, and gaming company Humble Bundle supports black game users by creating a $1 million fund.
Here is a list of ways to stay informed about the Black Lives Matter movement and ways you can donate.
