Feminists freak out over LEGO Friends: January 2012

This blog is in response to a petition & spam campaign of a few feminists

Some radical feminist groups realized they can advance their own agenda by launching a "No pink aisle, bring back beautiful" social media campaign by claiming The LEGO Group offers no "gender equity" in the new theme "Friends" and its marketing. They created an online petition, then proceeded encouraging their followers to SPAM the LEGO Facebook page with one of TLG's own ads. Laced with false dramatic information, they convinced the petition site to include their "cause" in its membership mailing notice.
This blog sheds light on their omissions, skewed facts & images.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Petition promoter doesn't like pink 'or' macho

The main person behind the petition against The LEGO Group, Lyn Mikel Brown, also is against what she believes are "macho" toys for boys. Along with her partner & fellow Colby College instructor, they appear to have spent the past 20 years railing against toy companies.
    Lyn Mikel Brown is also owner of these entities: SPARK, Hardy Girls, PBG, which comprise the majority of petitioners and spreading of false information about LEGO Friends.

   SPARK has launched another 'campaign' called "Toy Aisle Action Project" telling its followers to put 'notes' onto product boxes in stores' toy aisles to protest that they are girl & boy toys.
   Yep, it's true. Here is an image of notes stuck to the display case of Olivia's House in the LEGO Friends theme:

    The irony is that Olivia's House is far more complex than the Creator House the feminist 'activist' added to that note she affixed to the display case. Olivia's House has 700 separate bricks/elements! It has to be built, the box contains un-assembled pieces. So, yeah, "she" is gonna have to build it.
   Also, notice the empty shelves below where Olivia's House set boxes used to be -- yet are sold out! Why are they sold out? Because girls LOVE them!

   And here are some more: one note attached to a Harry Potter LEGO set which says something about how girls like to play with Harry Potter too. Well, yeah, so what's stopping them?

So, if a retailer puts this in an aisle with other girl-oriented toys, there are wrong (according to SPARK) and if a retailer puts this item in the "construction toy" aisle, then they are wrong (according to SPARK), so what is it? It seems like no matter what companies and retailers do, SPARK feminists are going to complain about it.

They can't even see females when there are females in LEGO sets!!

   Can you see the female Police Officer Minfig right there in the center of the whole Police Station?? I hope so!
(set is #60047 released in 2014)

    The irony of Stephanie writing a comment on that post above on their FB page is that even in her article against LEGO Friends she admitted to not playing with LEGO bricks, "because I didn’t like all the assembly required," so, for her to say she would like it even now is hilarious. Also, demonstrated is the ignorance of these groups not realizing it's the "Construction Toy Aisle" not the boys aisle, or LEGO aisle (as there are MB & Knex, and Lincoln Logs, etc., in that aisle too), so their argument is moot.

   And some other toys in their target sights.

Product tampering surely is not welcome at retailers. It seems like it would be some sort of misdemeanor crime. One Toys 'R' Us employee posted a message to SPARK that what they are doing, and encouraging others to do, is merely causing more work for employees -- who have to waste time removing the notes.
It's not causing some sort of revolutionary change in product development. So, sorry feminists -- you're wasting peoples' time and making yourselves look very petty indeed. Petty product tampering.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

SPARK letter to TLG

SPARK letter to TLG Jan 20, 2012

    Once again, you do not speak for all girls. You do not speak for me. I have spent my life in STEM disciplines. I faced stereotyping. I over-came obstacles in male-dominated academic and professional careers. You do not speak for me.
    Kids need to be exposed to examples of what their parents may perceive as gender-stereotyped messages in marketing, media and at point-of-purchase, so that they may know to recognize it. They need to be able to delineate for themselves if it is indeed a suggestion, or a trick telling them this is what society demands of them.
    If you feel this is the issue -- then use this as a teachable moment for your own kids. Give them the skills to navigate through society's messages, so they may use those same problem-solving skills in application to other aspects in life. Whether inter-personal relationships, or in the virtual world, kids need to have the ability to think for themselves.

    However, your campaign's tactics on the Internet, consisting of re-spinning half-truths and fact omissions is very unbecoming of any intellectual persuasion.

    To the millions of girls who are thrilled about LEGO Friends and the new options which encourage them to manipulate bricks into their play & imagination time, I say: Build on girls!
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Besides, why would The LEGO Group give into demands by people who call them names like this:

Melissa Atkins Wardy 'aka' Pigtail Pals and her foul language (see above name she called TLG execs) have perpetuated so many falsehoods about LEGO Friends online, such as them being pre-fab (which they are not), it's hard to keep up with the drivel -- all the while she bought her first ever LEGO bricks in December. The only regret of covering her actions on this blog is that she is online as a business, masquerading as a "girl empowerment" group -- giving her any attention is a bad side-effect. The sacrifice is worth it -- documenting the tactics and actions of these petitioners is here for posterity.
Pigtail Pals pays bloggers to write up stories about perceived inequality in toys, apparel, media, etc., which she hopes to turn into outrage --and hopefully another "viral" effect for her little t-shirt business.
She confesses to never reading the actual public replies to controversial articles, because she considers the articles (and the emotional outrage they inspire) to be her "job security."

Now she teaches her 7-year-old daughter to use profanity too!

Just another reason her initial ignorance about LEGO Friends and spreading false information is more hypocritical than ever. Why should any other parent listen to her? Those words are not appropriate for a young girl. Period.
Please Melissa, just stay away from LEGO Friends, you don't deserve their awesomeness.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

The LEGO Group's reply to misleading information

http://aboutus.lego.com/en-us/news-room/2012/january/lego-group-commentary-on-attracting-more-girls-to-construction-play/

LEGO Group commentary on attracting more girls to construction play

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Hoodwinked by pink

Spark changed petition sponsors; somehow they convinced Change to include it in their mailings to its 5 million members. This, after their petition drive stalled-out at around 4,000 signatures over about 2 weeks time period of spreading incorrect information by: tweeting, posting, e-mailing, blogging, begging off op-ed submissions on media sites, plus creating and redistributing false images --- all the while blocking & deleting counter-information posts, links, and product images.

When members arrive at the petition page via a quick link, they are presented with a fantastical story of false information. Any "electronically signed" petition isn't valid if the facts aren't there. Using Spark's own child actresses of Dana Edell (owner of an acting studio) in videos filled with false information.

    FACT: 2012 does have more female MiniFigs. How can LEGO add more girls to Harry Potter? Shall they request them from JK Rowling? Yet, you claim "back-story" isn't inspiring creativity anyway? So, which is it, girls?
    FACT: Images of both girls & boys are all over LEGO advertising -- Buckets, KidsFests, Posters, Magazines, Club magazines, Game covers, etc.
    FACT: It's a Splash Pool -- just like millions of young girls enjoy in their own backyards. It's Ice Cream (apparently some people aren't familiar with LEGO utensils -- the glass is a goblet, used in many, many sets) not a cocktail "drink" in the one small set in Friends theme. That set is easily over-looked if any of you actually went to a store near you to see for yourself!
    FACT: Olivia's house is prominent -- oh, and is not "dumbed-down" and the set box includes System bricks compatible to all System sets (yes, including City) -- and it has 695 separate bricks & pieces -- loose and un-assembled.
FACT: Stay tuned -- there are more Friends on the way -- you may have to look to the sky!

No, the "no pink" campaigners do not represent all girls making up 50% of the population. You do not represent me.

The LEGO Group is a privately help company; if you don't like one of their themes, don't buy it -- that will leave more for the rest of the world's builders.
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Update: Read what the Change.dot.org members' mailing message included in regard to the petition against LEGO. http://www.paganomation.com/2012/01/the-ongoing-lego-friends-controversy/

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Another petition based on false information created by New Moon Girls: http://www.care2.com/causes/girls-to-lego-what-the-heck-are-you-thinking.html

FACT: The LEGO Group already does employs female designers.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Friends in the LEGO aisle

FACT: Friends new sets are placed in the LEGO aisle at major retailers in North America.

FACT: Friends sets at the end of the construction toy aisle (note: it is not called the boy toy aisle).
(this display was sold out of Olivia's House Jan 9)

Display of Olivia's House - set includes 695 separate bricks/pieces.

Display of Olivia's House interior - yellow serrated wheel allows customers to rotate set for viewing.

Monday, January 2, 2012

Fembots FIRST Robotics Team 2009

One of three teams featured on Oprah

http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Inside-the-17th-Annual-FIRST-Annual-Robotics-Competition/4

Fact: The LEGO Group gathers research data from all of its educational and corporate sponsorship activities all over the world. FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) and TLG's partnership organization: FLL (First LEGO League) have been listening to girls (and boys) since 1998.
Some women's rights groups claim girls who build with LEGO NXT Robotics should have been involved with development of any new "for girls" designated theme. They must not realize, NXT building/programming girls were part of the voice!

This is in response to some groups complaining real NXT girls were not part of LEGO research for the new theme:

FACTS & Myths

FACT: Friends sets contain 'loose' bricks which must be connected together to build the model on the box-art (instructions included) or any other creation a girl can imagine with those bricks. The models seen in images DO NOT come out of the box pre-assembled.

Myth: LEGO Friends sets come pre-fabricated = a myth!

FACT: Pink bricks have been around for about a decade.

Myth: LEGO Friends set bricks are mostly pink = a myth!
(Only about 10% of the bricks found in each set box are of the color pink; the rest are comprised of Azure Blue {a LEGO Friends unique color}, White, Tan, Lime Green, Medium Lavender, Dark Lavender, Magenta {dark bright pink}, Red, Yellow-Green, Black, Brown, Light Aqua {new color to LEGO, due to Friends}, Orange, Yellow, Grey, Light Pink, Bright Orange, Bright Pink, and several shades of Green.)

FACT: Girls who where not already building & playing with LEGO bricks took part in the 4-year anthropological research study across the globe. They are the girls for whom the Friends Mini-Dolls were developed; those girls wanted a more realistic "avatar" to represent them. They were not interested in the classic yellow minifigure.

Myth: If only TLG made more girls as minifigures then more girls would be building with LEGO bricks and therefore no need for the Friends line = a myth!

FACT: In 2011 girls were only 9% of The LEGO Group's customers; after Friends release and by 2013 girls comprise 28% of the toy company's customers. Although many girls who built with LEGO bricks prior to Friends enjoyed other lines, such as Creator, Harry Potter, Architecture, the overall number of girls building was less than boys. Friends serves as a bridge by appealing to some girls to engage them with construction toy building -- then hopefully follow interests into additional themes, such as Modular, Monster Fighters, NinjaGO, Architecture, Chima, CITY and more ...

Myth: Girls have been segregated withing the LEGO building experience = a myth!

FACT: The LEGO Group had severe profit loss in 2003; then after releasing licensed tie-in (such as Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Harry Potter) sets, their profits rose.

Myth: If TLG reverts to gender-less buckets of red, blue & green bricks, then everything will be just fine = a myth!
~This is a sentimental notion which does not take into account the very rapid growth of technology and competition for kids' attention in engaged play.

About Paradisa:

The LEGO Paradisa System for girls was introduced in 1992. These sets included parts for making buildings with pink and white accents. Many of these sets had either beach or riding themes. Therre were also a pair of basic sets, called “Freestyle” in 1995 that were in a box or a pink suitcase. These were very similar to the actually produced Paradisa System sets, except these were not model sets, but mainly spare parts basic sets.

There were a number of unique baseplates produced for the Paradisa line, many having beach and water features, and very light green grassy areas. There were also several parts not found in other systems in pink or dark pink. So some parts in these sets are somewhat rare.

The Paradisa System of sets were retired circa 1998, and other LEGO systems, such as the Scala System (dollhouse type sets) and Belville.

Paradisa Sets were sold in continental Europe, Britain, Australia, USA and Canada.

LEGO Homemaker sets Story

This was the beginning of the Homemaker series of sets, which were produced from 1971 until 1982. The early Homemaker sets from 1971-73 predated the first LEGO people, which were first introduced in 1974. Even after 1974 many of the smaller sets still did not have LEGO people included in the sets.

The first LEGO people were not the small minifigs that we know of today, but were large yellow 2x2x2 round heads and neck attached to a 2x2 brick. There were bendable arms that attached to the sides of the 2x2 bricks. At the end of each arm was a round hand with a hollow stud on top. This allowed the people to hold LEGO accessories. The remainder of the big head peoples’ body was made up of regular and sloped LEGO bricks. There were also LEGO hair pieces (male and female) as well as LEGO hats (male and female). The yellow heads had several different expressions painted on them. Some looked young with freckles; others looked old with glasses painted on. And there were several different hair colors and hair styles for the large heads. The hats varied in color and styles. There was even one American Indian set that had the heads made of red LEGO. But all other sets had yellow heads.

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