We all know Barbie. She's Mattel's famous mascot and the doll with over a hundred careers. Yet what we know the icon for isn't careers or her movies and TV shows, but it's her body. Barbie's figure isn't just a hot topic in the world of dolls, but also in politics and how society views body acceptance. Barbie is and has always been a very easy target. Now I'm not saying that the doll or the company is purely innocent. This is still the company who packaged a fake diet book called “Don’t eat” in a doll for little girls during the early Barbie days. But you have to admit, the doll has come a long way and Mattel hasn't been given enough credit for the past eight years where they have been slowly trying to change the world's perception of the doll.

In 2009, Mattel came out with the So In Style doll line which features an all black cast of dolls each portraying different African American features and hairstyles. To go along with the dolls, Mattel even partnered with different African American clothing lines to gives the dolls clothes just for them.

In 2015, Mattel came out with Barbies that were diverse in facial features but not body type. These dolls included the 2015 Shaved Hair Barbie who is just a blonde Barbie doll with one side of her head shaved, and an Asian Barbie who was actually made to look Asian and does not just have black hair. It should also be noted that in the same year Barbie came out with a new mold for her feet that allowed the doll to wear flats in stead of always being in heels.However, some might still see the new 2016 Barbies as a tactic on Mattel’s end to try to compete with the Monster High dolls, its sister line Ever After High, Bratz and even Frozen dolls who have been slowly knocking the doll off her pedestal. While I think this is partially true, you can’t deny changing Barbie’s image has been in the works for a while now. Even though their attempts seem to fall on death ears, “At her core, she’s just a body, not a character, a canvas upon which society can project its anxieties about body image.” - Jess Weiner, a talk show host interviewed by Mattel.

Even with these new Barbies, Mattel won’t be able to please everyone and they know this. I can’t even say how these new Barbies will be received once they are officially on shelves but I do think they are worth checking out. Barbie has done a lot to get away from her origin and while this may not put her back on the top, I do think it’s a good start.