ADVERTISEMENTA three-year-old boy has been refused the right to participate in Disneyland Paris’ “Princess for a Day” experience.
During the activity, kids dress up as princesses for a photo shoot at Disneyland Hotel.
Noah, who is a Disney’s Frozen super fan, was “buzzing with excitement” when his mother, Hayley McLean-Glass, showed him pictures of other kids who took part in the experience.
A post shared by Parenting Blogger Hayley (@sparklesandstretchmarks) on Aug 29, 2017 at 7:36am PDT
Caption: Noah dressing up as princess Elsa from the Disney animated film Frozen. McLean-Glass sent an email to Disneyland Paris requesting to book the experience as a Christmas gift, only to have it denied. In a screenshot posted by McLean on her blog , Disney’s message reads: “At this time, it is not possible to book Princess for a Day for a boy. However, we would be happy to arrange a tailored gift pack […]”.
Disappointed by this response, McLean-Glass wrote in an open letter: “If a little girl wants to be a super hero, she can be. If she wants to be a Jedi, she can be. She can be whatever she wants. Just like Walt Disney himself said, “If you can dream it you can do it!” Unless you’re a little boy who wants a Princess experience at Disneyland apparently…that you can’t do!”
She carries on to state that: “This isn’t even a gay/straight debate… this is a child who wants to be just like his favourite character.”
A post shared by Parenting Blogger Hayley (@sparklesandstretchmarks) on Jun 19, 2017 at 12:04pm PDT
Caption: Hayley McLean-Glass and her three children. Disneyland Paris has formally apologised. In a statement to ITV News it said: “We are taking this situation very seriously and sincerely apologise to Hayley and Noah for the distress caused.
“An isolated incident, the cast member’s response is not reflective of any policy or belief held here at Disneyland Paris. We are going to ensure this does not happen again.
“Diversity is near and dear to our hearts and we want to make sure that all our guests enjoy their experience at our resort. Of course, both boys and girls are welcome to enjoy the princess for a day experience in addition to all our other special activities.”
Since the incident, the description of the “Princess for a day” activity on Disneyland Paris’ website has changed from “every girl’s wish can come true” to “every child’s wish can come true”.
