“Lil Monkey” Doll pulled from Costco shelves, for obvious reasons
An African American doll wearing a hat that says “Lil Monkey” on the front has been pulled off Costco shelves after people complained that it’s politically incorrect.
The doll, called “Cuddle with Me,” is manufactured by a company called BrassKey Keepsakes and the CEO of the company, Mary Gustaff, says the derogatory headgear somehow didn’t move the needle on their political-correctness meter.
“It’s so unfortunate because now it’s being portrayed as a purposeful act to be disrespectful and that’s not true. We really apologize. We don’t think in that way. We don’t operate in that kind of thinking. We have a really diverse family-operated company that’s been around for 28 years. What would we have to gain for heaven’s sake?”
A plush monkey and other accessories accompany the doll in it’s package, hence, the headband that says “Lil Monkey,” but still, that’s a pretty big mistake. How on earth could that have slipped through the cracks?
We don’t doubt that what Gustaff says is true, but if the company is so diverse as she says in the quote above, shouldn’t someone have noticed the snafu during the manufacturing process? What about the employees at Costco who stocked the store shelves with these things?
