A lot of kids these days like to have themed birthday parties, which
is a big departure from when I was young. Back then, we had party favors
from Kmart, a homemade cake and, if we were lucky, a few presents from
our parents.
Recently, one 4-year-old black girl in Harlem wanted to have a Barbie-themed party, and her mother, Karen Braithwaite, was more than willing to organize the event, except for one little problem: She couldn’t find any black Barbie-themed party favors.
I cannot believe that in 2013 Mattel and other corporations that target children are not more diverse in their products and branding. I know they have black Barbies, but that is not enough. Barbie, black or white, is already skewed when it comes to young girls and their image. I used to talk about this in my mass media classes. If you scaled Barbie to the dimensions of a real woman, she would have a 16-inch waistline, which is smaller than most waif-like kids.
So how sensitive should a company be in regard to being inclusive in its branding and marketing collateral?
I remember my niece was in love with the movie “Wizard of Oz” to the point that she would totally get into character. She had to wear this little party dress and some red shoes my mom bought her. And to top it off, she would grab her cat to play the part of Toto. It got to the point where the poor little cat would freak out and hide every time it heard “Somewhere over the Rainbow.”
My point is, she saw herself as Dorothy, because no one told her she could not be that little girl following the yellow brick road.
It seems that by having only white Barbie party accessories, Mattel is implicitly saying that only young white girls are affirmed in that image.
Braithwaite felt the same way, so she started a petition on Change.org asking Mattel to manufacture more multicultural Barbie accessories.
The petition stated, in part: “Even though it seems like a small thing, featuring the white Barbie so prominently on the banners, cups, napkins, plates, party favors, and invitations, while relegating the "ethnic" Barbies to near-invisible cameos sends a clear -- and troubling -- message to young girls.”
Barbie has come a long way. I have shared that my mom did not allow
my sisters to play with Barbie dolls because none was black, and she did
not want my sisters growing up with a skewed image of their own culture
and beauty.
The New York Observer quoted Braithwaite as saying, “There’s a longstanding notion that little girls of color needs to have their self-image reinforced by things they see around them, and it can be really damaging to a little girl to see an image that’s so far from anything she is.”
To its credit, Mattel seems to be open to feedback and released this statement: “We work closely with various partners to develop and distribute Barbie-themed products, such as party supplies, and we will be sharing this valuable feedback with them to start conversations and evaluate the business. We listen carefully to our consumers and take all feedback seriously.”
I hope Mattel does make an earnest effort to be more multicultural, but at the end of the day, how authentic can a plastic doll be when it portrays an unrealistic image of beauty and femininity? If young black girls are to be affirmed, it will require more than simply taking a Barbie doll and giving it brown skin. We need to see an exploration of culture. So who knows; instead of a Malibu Barbie house, we may some day see urban brownstone for her fabulous brown friend, Brakita.
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