By Natalie Sandoval
First, they were axed from the live-action Snow White. Now, they’re denied the right to dance. Is the dwarf community bound to suffer eternal inequity?
A troupe of Spanish dwarves found themselves mired in controversy after performing at Spanish soccer star Lamine Yamal’s 18th birthday bash. Footage showing the dwarves entering the party sparked controversy, according to The New York Times (NYT). It may even lead to legal action. (RELATED: Left’s Attempts To Help Disabled Workers May Be Doing More Harm Than Good)
Spain’s Ministry of Social Rights has petitioned the government to investigate Yamal’s party, reports Spanish newspaper Marca, for allegedly violating the country’s disability laws. Spain prohibits performances which mock or denigrate the disabled, according to the outlet.
Soccer phenom Lamine Yamal’s glitzy 18th birthday party turns into dwarf scandal https://t.co/oTnAiD7xVI pic.twitter.com/PsOyWaWbRM
— New York Post (@nypost) July 15, 2025
“It’s unacceptable that in the 21st century, people with dwarfism continue to be used as entertainment at private parties,” whined Carolina Puente, President of Spain’s Association for People with Achondroplasia and Other Skeletal Dysplasia (ADEE), according to the New York Post.
“We are concerned that people with money, people with power think they can get away with it,” Spain’s director general for disability rights — Jesus Martin Blanco — told EFE, according to Cadena SER.
But at least one of the alleged dwarf performers has rejected his would-be white knights. He appeared on Spanish radio show RAC1 to defend his actions.
“No one disrespected us, let us work in peace. I don’t understand why there’s so much hype. We’re normal people who do what we want, in an absolutely legal way,” the anonymous dwarf complained, according to a translation of his remarks in the New York Post.
The ADEE “is humiliating people with dwarfism,” he reportedly claimed. “For a couple of years now, these people [authorities] have been harming us; they want to ban a job that we like, and in no case have they offered jobs or courses to the affected people. We work as entertainers. Why can’t we do it? Because of our physical condition?”
The dwarf claims he and others danced, served drinks and performed magic tricks in an approximately hour-length show, according to the New York Post.
Spanish officials have waded into hilarious and choppy waters. Their initial outrage appears to rest on the assumption that the mere presence of a performing dwarf constitutes a mockery of his condition. As the anonymous complainant rightly notes, Spain’s disability activists have championed employment discrimination against the very people they claim to represent.
Where, exactly, do these Spanish killjoys draw the line?
American pop star Sabrina Carpenter is no more than five feet tall, as she revealed in an interview with Wired. Would rule by Spanish law mean excising her songs from the radio entirely? If so, all this absurdity might be worth it. (RELATED: Pop Star Sabrina Carpenter Releases Anti-Religious ‘Feather’ Music Video)
More to the point, actual dwarves have much to offer the entertainment industry. Consider martial arts. Regular wrestling pales in comparison to “Extreme Dwarfanators Wrestling,” one of the many midget wrestling experiences available to consumers. Really, every corner of the performing arts deserves a dwarfish parody. Casablanca, but tiny. Shakespeare, but smaller.
One hopes the Spanish government will realize their folly. One prays the Spaniards will restore full human rights to the dwarves among them. Regardless, my support for Spanish dwarves remains as strong as ever.
