LEGO Halts Marketing for Police-Themed Sets, Donates $4M Toward 'Supporting Black Children'

The LEGO Group is taking a stance against racial injustice and police brutality in the wake of George Floyd's death.

On Thursday, marketing service Rakuten sent out an email to websites that receive affiliate marketing money to promote LEGO toys and informed them of changes coming with LEGO products, according to The Toy Book.

"In light of recent events, LEGO has requested the below products to be removed from sites and any marketing ASAP,” the email states, according to Toy Book, listing 31 sets that depicted scenes with police, firefighters and the White House.

The Danish toymaking company later clarified the purpose of the email in a statement to The Toy Book, explaining that they have yet to stop the sales of the LEGO sets on their website.

"We requested that our affiliate partners refrain from posting promotional LEGO content as part of our decision to respect #BlackOutTuesday and pause posting content on our social media channels in response to the tragic events in the U.S. We regret any misunderstanding and will ensure that we are clearer about our intentions in the future," the statement said.

Lego

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The LEGO Group also announced on Instagram Wednesday that they would be donating $4 million to "organizations dedicated to supporting black children and educating all children about racial equality."

"We stand with the black community against racism and inequality," the company said. "There is much to do."

In response to the death of Floyd — who died last week after he was pinned to the ground as white police officer Derek Chauvin placed a knee on Floyd's neck for more than eight minutes — many organizations have donated towards amplifying diversity in the U.S.

Facebook, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp platforms, announced Monday that it would donate $10 million toward "efforts committed to ending racial injustice."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also issued a statement, explaining that they are consulting civil rights advisors and their employees to "identify organizations locally and nationally that could most effectively use" their funding right now.

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Many celebrities have also publicly shared donations towards the Black Lives Matter cause following Floyd's killing, including Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, the Weeknd, and Niecy Nash.

To help combat systemic racism, consider learning from or donating to these organizations:

• Campaign Zero (joincampaignzero.org) which works to end police brutality in America through research-proven strategies.

• ColorofChange.org works to make government more responsive to racial disparities.

•National Cares Mentoring Movement (caresmentoring.org) provides social and academic support to help black youth succeed in college and beyond.