Target seems to be on a roll when it comes to becoming more inclusive this year–first they announced they were beginning to shed normative gender labeling in their toy section. Now they’re being praised for featuring a girl with disabilities dressed as Princess Elsa from “Frozen” in one of their print ads. Can we get a round of applause?
In an advertisement for children’s Halloween costumes, a little girl is shown with arm crutches and leg braces while modeling the powder blue dress as Disney’s infamous character. While this isn’t Target’s first ad featuring a child with disabilities (there was one in 2012 showing a child with Down syndrome), we’re glad to see they’re continuing to take steps in the right direction.
Of course, it would be remiss not to say it’s still sad ads like this haven’t happened sooner and that we (as a society) have to be grateful for inclusivity at all, but regardless, this is definitely a monumental moment for everyone. And we’re happy to see it get the attention it deserves.
READ: To the Woman at Target Who Shamed Me & My Son
As with every major change, there has been a lot of chatter on social media–in this case, the talk has been hugely positive. Most notably, a mother of a child with disabilities, Jen Kroll, posted on Facebook how happy she is to see a major corporation including “children with special needs into advertising makes them less of a spectacle to the general public when they venture out into the real world.” We couldn’t have said this better ourselves.
Target even responded to a Twitter user, stating, “We’re really glad that you liked it! Our Advertising team tries hard to include all of our guests.”
Amen.
