Barcelona’s teenage football star Lamine Yamal recently clocked 18, and like many young people stepping into adulthood, he threw a big party to celebrate. It was supposed to be a joyful moment. Friends, family, music, laughter and a fresh chapter ahead. Yamal is now old enough to sign a professional deal with Barcelona, and everything seemed to be lining up perfectly.
With the new football season approaching, talk is already flying around that he might be given the famous number 10 shirt. That’s the same shirt worn by legends like Messi, Ronaldinho and Maradona. So it made sense that he wanted to celebrate big. Videos and photos from the party made it to social media, showing a cheerful atmosphere and plenty of smiling faces. But soon, the mood around the party changed.
It didn’t take long for the celebration to stir serious backlash. Footage showed that some of the entertainment at the event involved people with dwarfism performing for guests. What some people might call fun was quickly called out as harmful, offensive and disrespectful by many, including a disability rights group in Spain.
The group is called the Association of People with Achondroplasia and Other Skeletal Dysplasias, also known as ADEE. They were not happy. In fact, they strongly condemned Yamal’s decision. According to them, hiring people with dwarfism as party entertainers is not just outdated, it also fuels negative stereotypes and reduces human beings to objects of mockery.
The president of ADEE, Carolina Puente, released a statement saying it is shocking that in this day and age, people with dwarfism are still treated like side attractions for amusement. She said it becomes even more serious when someone like Lamine Yamal, a public figure with a large following, is the one involved.
She explained that when celebrities do this kind of thing, it sends a dangerous message to society that such behaviour is okay. It tells young people that it is fine to laugh at others because they look different. According to her, this is not just wrong. It is damaging and needs to stop.
Carolina Puente went further to say that ADEE will not stay silent. She promised that the organisation will take both social and legal action. She also called on anyone with dwarfism or skeletal dysplasia who has been mistreated in a similar way to reach out to ADEE for support.
In Spain, the law is clear. The General Law on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities forbids using people with disabilities for entertainment in a way that invites mockery or disrespect. If what happened at Yamal’s party is seen as a breach of that law, legal action could follow.
As the noise around the party grows, Yamal has returned to pre-season training with Barcelona. His focus now will be on football and preparing for what could be the biggest season of his young career. But the incident has put him under serious pressure. The spotlight is not just on his feet anymore. It is also on his choices, his influence and how he carries the weight of fame.
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