The LEGO Group is sending a loud and clear message to the LGBTQ+ community that it holds values of inclusion and acceptance of every living person in the world, and it does so by releasing its first LGBTQ+ thematic set just ahead of Pride Month, next June. This is wonderful news for LEGO fans, but it goes way beyond that. As Matthew Ashton, the creator of this colorful set said, this is not merely intended for people within the LGBTQ+ community, but it goes to show support to everyone, be it supporters, be it teachers, kids, parents, work colleagues, friends - this set is for everyone out there.
Ashton designed this LEGO set because he feels like people could do so much more to support and respect each other, whatever the differences are, regardless of skin color, sexual orientation, gender identity, or else. The LEGO set, called "Everyone is Awesome," achieves this in a very delicate way, and that is by having 11 characters, each with their own background, hair, head, and body colored according to each of the stripes of the LGBTQ+ flag. This set is an important milestone, as it fosters much more than self-acceptance by broadening the message to everybody.
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The deliberate choice from the LEGO Group and Matthew Ashton not to include gender-specific clothes is a bold one, and it speaks volumes about the message this set is sending. Characters sport each their own hairstyle in a very gender-neutral way, and heads don't come with any facial feature, in a similar way to that of mannequins on display in a shop window, for example. This is particularly relevant because the meaning behind mannequins not having specific facial features is to show potential customers that everyone can look like that, including people looking at the faceless fashion models.
This relates perfectly to the new LGBTQ+ LEGO set because it shows that everyone can be part of the community. Matthew Ashton said that this set is to show people that society can and should be more inclusive of everyone, just like children, who have no filters for their affection to specific individuals, accepting everyone regardless of their background. Ashton himself had issues with his orientation as a boy, and that's because adults were either trying to protect him or have him toughen up to become someone else, and he said that if somebody had gifted him this set, at some point, he would have felt less lonely in his identity.
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That's the purpose of this 346-pieces LEGO set, to allow people to show support to whoever struggles with their orientation or gender identity, be it out in the open or in the enclosed spaces of their own mind. The LGBTQ+ set is a delight to look at, with all its bright colors and refreshing look, that it will fit everywhere.
Everyone deserves to be loved, no matter who they love or who they are. Everyone deserves to feel accepted by others, rather than feel judged or feel "wrong" in any way. Everyone deserves to feel awesome, and that's what the LEGO Group's message is.
The LGBTQ+ LEGO set called "Everyone is Awesome" will release in June.
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