Barbara Millicent Roberts, or more commonly known as Barbie, has been the pioneer for young girls for a decade. Barbie started out as just a fashion doll that was manufactured by American toy company Mattel. Barbie was first introduced on March 9, 1959. The doll was instantly a hit with young girls around the world and sold 300,000 in the '50s, but now nearly a billion are sold in 2016. Over the years, Barbie has been a part of millions of young girls and teens lives, influencing many young girls and teens around the world. The question is, what is Barbie's message to young girls and teens around the world? That's easy! Barbie's message is "Be what you want to be!"
With that message Barbie has held over 36 different positions, including being an astronaut and even running for president! So what is the problem you ask? An interesting question is, has Barbie only been a pioneer for young Caucasian girls and teens only? Why is there a lack of African American Barbie dolls? Is Barbie portraying that only Caucasians can be successful and do anything they put their mind to? According to Brokey McPoverty, blogger at Postbourgie website, "The first African American Barbie doll was created in the late '70s during the Black Power movement of the '60s and '70s, and when word of Barbie’s German ancestry slipped, rumors of Nazism and white supremacy began to swirl. To save her image, Barbie’s PR team pressed her to make a black friend to prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that she wasn’t racist. Her handlers imported Christie, a doll from Detroit to fill the void."
Christie's full name is La Chrysanthemum Nichole Jackson, she became Christie because Barbie and her camp thought it was “cuter” and “friendlier.” They also told everyone she was from Malibu, made her straighten her hair, and put her on a strict diet and workout regimen to keep her proportions as unrealistic as Barbie’s. La Chrysanthemum wasn't as popular as Barbie and the reasons could not be any simpler, La Chrysanthemum did not sell as fast as Barbie. La Chrysanthemum wasn't "publicly appealing," as Barbie and many teens and girls didn't like La Chrysanthemum and only saw her as Barbie's friend. It wasn't until 2009 that Mattel tried an African American Barbie doll line, that featured African American dolls that had more realistic African American features, such as fuller lips and bigger noses.
Has Barbie really been empowering young girls and teens to be themselves, or has Barbie destroyed young girls and teens image and self-esteem? As a true Barbie Doll fan, I personally think Barbie has taught young girls and teens that they have to have long blonde hair and blue eyes, that they are only beautiful if they are a size 2 and even though Barbie is only a doll, the message speaks louder than you'd think. I remember feeling less and not as good as others because I did not look the same as Barbie or my caucasian counterparts. I remember my mother buying me a "black doll" that was a cheaper made product of the beloved Barbie. Her hair wasn't as straight as Barbie and she wasn't as "pretty" as Barbie, and I threw that doll away because at that time I did not understand that it had nothing to do with Barbie. It was me rejecting my culture because my culture was not widely broadcasted and seen in a positive light like Barbie was.
Another issue we decided as a society that wasn't up for discussion is size. Why does Barbie only come in one size when young girls and teens in America are all different sizes and shades of beautiful? The real question is, has Barbie truly taught all girls and teens of America that they are beautiful as they are? Or has Barbie taught girls and teens that you have to fit a certain criteria in order to be considered beautiful? Has Barbie truly taught all young girls and teens that you can be anything you want to be or has she taught them that only certain people can be successful?
