Making news recently is the release of a Lego ® minifigure wheelchair. This is fantastic achievement for the Lego® Group for a number of reasons, one being that it affords even more opportunity to make people as Lego® figures which is always appreciated, but more importantly it demonstrates an important step by a toy maker to paint people with disabilities in a positive light.
The Lego® brand has always concerned itself with impacting children in a positive way, and this move is big step in the right direction. It is important that children view someone with a disability as just another human being. Having worked for a number of years in the field of disabilities it never ceased to amaze me how close minded some members of the community were when it came to viewing and interacting with people with a disability.
Fear I guess plays a major role in this and to a large degree this fear is generated by a lack of empathy and understanding. Educating kids at a young age and exposing them to these issues in a positive light helps to undercut stereotypes and stigmas which have held us in the dark ages where some of these issues are concerned.
The Lego® minifigure in the wheelchair becomes another part of the Lego® community of people of all walks of life and this of course leaves a positive residue that children pick up on. It might not have a significantly world-changing impact, but it’s definitely a step in the right direction. There can be no understating how importantly the views of today’s children will affect the world of tomorrow. Congratulations Lego®!
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