Toy manufacturers Playmobil have some explaining to do after one of their toys has come under fire for resembling ‘an African American slave wearing a neck shackle’.

A mother in California was shocked when her 5-year-old received a pirate ship as a present, although it was one figurine that really raised her ire. You can see her reaction up top, then the Playmobil response below from the Guardian:

Playmobil said that the toy was intended to portray life on a 17th-century pirate ship.

In a statement…the company said: “If you look at the box, you can see that the pirate figure is clearly a crew member on the pirate ship and not a captive.

“The figure was meant to represent a pirate who was a former slave in a historical context. It was not our intention to offend anyone in anyway.”

Here’s a screenshot from the instruction manual that refers to the figurine in question:

It appears Ida Lockett’s son wasn’t all that taken with the toy either, the mother sharing this post on Facebook:

The lady who gave the present, Ida’s sister Aimee, was also irate:

“WOW,” she wrote. “Would it be too much to ask for you to just create a regular old black pirate?”

“Newsflash, Playmobil: this is the 21st century. People of African descent have contributed to mankind in a myriad of ways that existed outside of the disgusting institution of the slave trade. Selling children’s toys that are suggestive of slavery in play is obscene, even more so given the marked absence of diversity in your entire toy line.”

One can only agree with her sentiment, regardless of Playmobil’s intentions someone should have picked up on this long before it hit the assembly line and was shipped all around the world to ruin kids’ days.

[sources:guardian&washingtonpost]