The Denmark-based toy company LEGO has come under fire for promoting Pride parades and other LGBT themes despite having a young customer base.
It’s true that plenty of adults enjoy building LEGO sets, and some of the company’s offerings are explicitly made for ages 18+. But that doesn’t change the fact that the vast majority of LEGO sets are marketed to children. Those kids are also following the brand on social media.
“Pride moments built, brick by brick,” the Pride-themed Instagram caption says. “Swipe to see more of our LEGO colleagues’ stories.”
The attached slideshow includes video clips of LEGO minifig characters discussing their “coming out” stories, including one attending a Pride parade and another male character proposing to his boyfriend.
Many parents were furious and called for a boycott.
“LEGO is now openly pushing Pride parades, gay marriage, and rainbow ideology straight at children,” one X commenter wrote. “This isn’t ‘inclusion.’ It’s sexualizing childhood and grooming the next generation with adult themes.”
“Parents are waking up. Boycott time. Companies that target kids with this stuff deserve to lose customers… keep this garbage away from our children,” the post continued.
“So it is the 250th year of [the] United States and THIS is what a beloved American toy, a favorite pastime for millions and millions of kids produced! THIS is what you push to kids and young people,” another person agreed.
This isn’t the first time LEGO has promoted Pride. In 2021, the company released a set called “Everyone Is Awesome” that showcased 11 figurines with different hairstyles and faceless heads, each in a color of the Progress Pride flag. The set included a purple-colored drag queen.
LEGO labeled the product as being intended for an 18+ audience, though set designer Matthew Ashton said in a statement that it was designed with children in mind. Ashton recalled his experience coming out as a gay man in his teens and said that if he had received this set from a loved one, he would have felt more supported.
“Children are our role models and they welcome everyone, no matter their background. Something we should all be aspiring to,” Ashton said. “If I had been given this set by somebody at that point in my life, it would have been such a relief to know that somebody had my back. To know that I had somebody there to say ‘I love you, I believe in you. I’ll always be here for you.’ So, in a way, this set is not just for the LGBTQIA+ community. It’s for all of the allies — parents, siblings, friends, schoolmates, colleagues, etc. — out there as well.”
This year, on June 1, the company again promoted an “Everyone is Awesome” activity on its official website. “It’s time to paint the town red, orange, yellow, green… basically a whole rainbow of color! That’s right, it’s Pride Month, and we’re celebrating the best way we know how: with LEGO® bricks!” the description says.
“This year, we want you to celebrate what makes you — and everyone you love — quite frankly, AWESOME. Embrace the power of those words and what they mean to you.”
“Remember, the more color, the better! After all, what would a Pride-themed build be without bright, beaming splashes of color? We want to see Technicolor creations that celebrates everything Pride Month stands for. So, gather your bricks and unleash your creativity!”
