Sesame Street does it again! Always a champion of diversity, acceptance and inclusion, on Thanksgiving Day, the venerable children’s show (with plenty of lessons adults can learn from, too) will present a new special, See Us Coming Together: A Sesame Street Special, which will celebrate the diversity of Asian and Pacific Islander (API) communities as it introduces Ji-Young, Sesame Street’s newest Muppet, who also happens to be the show’s first-ever Asian-American Muppet.
Airing on local PBS stations, the show will simulcast on multiple Sesame Street social platforms YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, PBS Kids and HBO Max. Among those scheduled to appear, the new special will feature celebrity guests Simu Liu (star of Marvel’s current hit film, Chang-Chi; Top Chef host/model/actress/author, Padma Lakshmi and tennis great, Naomi Osaka.
According to an AP press release, the newest resident of America’s most beloved street is Korean American and 7 years old. Ji-Young is also said to have two passions: “rocking out on her electric guitar and skateboarding.” To that end, and anticipation of the upcoming special, a music video medley Somebody Come and Play/Anyone Can Be Friends/You’re Special/Ji_Young’s Song just dropped on Sesame Street’s YouTube featuring Ji_Young and the Best Friends Band comprised of Elmo, Abby Cadabby and Tamir. CLICK HERE to watch.
The press release further reveals Ji-Young is “looking forward to showing her friends and neighbors aspects of Korean culture such as the food,” and loves to craft dishes such as tteokbokki (a.k.a. chewy rice cakes) with her grandmother.
See Us Coming Together: A Sesame Street Special is the latest in a continuing socially conscious series of specials and content from Sesame Workshop, the initiative having launched summer of 2020, with the CNN/Sesame Street town hall special, Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism. First airing June 6, that special was a thoughtful response to the murder of George Floyd and the ensuing protests, presented in a format appropriate for and related to a child’s prospective and questions. A segment in that special feature Elmo’s dad, Louie explaining the concepts of protesting and racism to the lovable red Muppet.
Another Sesame Street special, The Power of We, debuted on HBO Max, October 2020. That special featured cousins Gabrielle and Tamir, who teach Elmo and Abby how they can stand up to racism. This special spawned a series of online videos, under the umbrella, The Power of We Club.
On March 23, 2021, the initiative premiered its bilingual resource package, titled The ABC’s of Racial Literacy, on the Sesame Street in Communities website. It also introduced two Muppet characters, five-year-old Wes and his father Elijah, who appear in online videos. A music album was later released as part of the initiative, and its racial justice curriculum was planned to extend to the original Sesame Street series in Seasons 52 and 53.
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