Why this mother wants Disney to include a new type of princess

Thousands of people have called on Disney to create a new princess that represents children with Down syndrome after a Californian mother's petition went viral.

Keston Ott-Dahl's 15-month-old daughter, Delaney Syke, has Down's syndrome and the mother keeps a blog about her experiences.

Her petition imploring Disney president Sean Bailey to give Delaney and other children an on-screen role model has already been signed by more than 50,000 people. In it, Ott-Dahl says:

Children with Down syndrome are princes and princesses, too

Disney does a great job of depicting right from wrong. It has long providing wonderful moral lessons that teach our children to be good people - but sadly, the company comes up short in one critical area. Its movies have almost no representation of disabled people, those often bullied and looked down upon by their fellow children

• Keston Ott-Dahl

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel earlier this month, Ott-Dahl said that The Hunchback of Notre Dame was one of the few films in Disney's oeuvre featuring a character with a disability, adding that when it came to newer films such as Frozen: "When kids are growing up and seeing these characters, they’re not thinking of a classmate with Down syndrome. They’re seeing a beautiful princess.”

i100 has contacted Disney to ask for its response to the petition.

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