Antonia Ayres-Brown was just 11 when she first became irritated that the toys given to children at McDonald’s were often predetermined by the supposed gender of the child. Typically, this meant blue and rugged for boys and pink and frilly for girls. Here initial complaints went unheeded, so Ayres-Brown spent the next 6 years compiling evidence of this problematic practice, noting that in almost half of cases, fast food workers would not exchange the toys upon request.
A statement from McDonald’s Chief Diversity Officer indicated that toys would now be available to children based on their choice and not automatically chosen because of their gender. Here statement did not indicate that the toys would change so as to make such an obvious distinction less pronounced.
