The Danish toy company Lego on Thursday announced a new set, titled 'Everyone is Awesome', revealing a display of rainbow-colored toys standing on multi-colored lines.
"We’re super excited to reveal our new set - LEGO Everyone is Awesome! Because we celebrate every LEGO builder", Lego tweeted, attaching emojis of a heart and a rainbow.
The new release prompted mixed reactions, with some praising the inclusivity of the set, while others suggested that the move was political or aimed at making profits from a social movement.
Others suggested the release was 'woke', and threatened to stop purchasing Lego toys and boycott the brand.
Lego just let the politics to enter the child world.
— Limba (@Limba71342679) May 20, 2021
Yay, now LEGOs are gayed up as well. Will you be selling these sets in Russia and the Middle East? Or, like all companies, just push this on our kids?
— Shin Godzilla (@SegaChron) May 20, 2021
Yay, now LEGOs are gayed up as well. Will you be selling these sets in Russia and the Middle East? Or, like all companies, just push this on our kids?
— Shin Godzilla (@SegaChron) May 20, 2021
Simply awful. I love LEGO and my sons will play with it, but at this point I will only buy LEGO City
— Stefano Rodolfo Contini (@real_puie) May 20, 2021
Oh wow! Amazing! A massive corporation exploiting a social movement to make more money! 😍😍😍
— Madeline Joy 🕊 (@MadeJoyful) May 20, 2021
Not a big deal though…
— Et Pourquoi Pas? (@EtPas5) May 20, 2021
We’ll buy a different brand for our kids.
That’s a boring ass lego set, go woke.. go broke... be careful
— T-Baby OG (@TBabyOG) May 20, 2021
Others questioned whether the release would be linked with LGBTQ community charities, expressing concern that the corporation was trying to make money from "something that is supposed to symbolise equality."
Hi @LEGO_Group, would love to get a set like this, it looks stunning! Does any of the money from this set go to LGBTQ+ charities?
— 🏳️🌈 Oliver Bagshaw #BlackLivesMatter 🏳️🌈 (@OliverBagshaw) May 20, 2021
Is this just a set, or are you going to do more with it?
— C a t e r D e S m e t (@dewlanna) May 20, 2021
Money for charity?
Support LGBTQI+ organizations?
Earlier in May, a non-profit advocacy organization called Consumers’ Research launched a targeted advertising campaign against high-profile US companies including Coca Cola, Nike and American Airlines, accusing the corporations of engaging in what the lobbying group described as "woke politics".
Criticism for being labeled as "woke" even reached the CIA and the US Army, with many slamming promotional videos that celebrate diversity rather than professional achievement.
