If I had to sum up my childhood into one word it would be Barbie. To say that I loved my Barbie dolls would be an understatement considering that I owned practically every doll and accessory ever made by the franchise.
As a young girl that looked nothing like Barbie, I always admired her sparkling blue eyes and glossy golden hair. I was too young to realize that she had a lot to do with my young perception of beauty. Now as an adult, I realize that there are too many beautiful women in the world to define them all by one plastic woman. My heart will always love the classic Barbie, but my open millennial mind knows that it’s time for the doll to evolve to represent more than societies limited perception of a perfect woman.
Well, I never thought that today would be the day that #TheDollsEvolves, but it is!
The biggest news since Barbie’s launch in 1959 came today with the announcement of Barbie 2016! After much controversy about the dolls ability to mold young minds and the negative perception of body image with young girls, the doll has gone though her biggest makeover EVER. The transformation was part of a two year top-secret project that Matel has been working on to give barbie a more diverse appearance the spans beyond her eurocentric origins.
Time Magazine broke the news of Barbie’s big announcement. “American beauty ideals have evolved,” Elaina Dockterman of Time writes. “The curvaceous bodies of Kim Kardashian West, Beyoncé and Christina Hendricks have become iconic, while millennial feminist leaders like Lena Dunham are deliberately baring their un-Barbie-like figures onscreen, fueling a movement that promotes body acceptance.”
Today, Matel revealed a new squad of Barbie dolls and the 9-year-old me couldn’t be more excited!
The new 2016 Barbie Fashionistas collection includes 33 Barbie dolls in a range of skin tones, hair textures (and colors), and body shapes. There is a petite, tall and curvy Barbie, and they are all available in a variety of different ethnicities.
Of course you know the Barbie lover in me is excited to finally see a curvy Barbie! What can make it better? Barbie has blue hair! Now if only it was a little more grey, I could finally say that I found my Barbie soulmate!
What do you think of Barbie’s evolution? Do you think this is a step forward in the body positive movement?
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