An open letter to Society,
I have never been a Barbie-girl, this is not a Barbie world and quite honestly, life in plastic does not sound fantastic.
People like drama. People like to play off of insecurities and blame the world for the issues they create. We as people, have created the body image stigma that we face today. We are the ones that have sexualized and objectified women. That is not the fault of corporate America or dolls like Barbie. That is the fault of the people.
Growing up, I had one Barbie doll. As I brushed her hair or changed her clothes I picked up on the idea that to get anywhere in life I would have to have a nice ass and wear lots of makeup. I’m only realizing now, that this was not her fault.
That was the fault of the people who decided that ‘sexy sells’ and plastered a tall blond on every news station, movie poster and magazine for my young eyes to see. It was the fault of the people who accepted this and bought into the unrealistic standards set by the media.
Speaking from the heavier side of the scale, it is incredibly demeaning to have people shame all of your physical imperfections. If you are too heavy, or too skinny, or too short, or too tall you are made to feel as though you’re not good enough for society and that is the stigma that you have only encouraged.
This is why people do not like Barbie. She became the standard of beauty for millions of young girls. The unrealistic body image that the doll embodies just goes to show the sad ideals we have failed to destroy and come to accept: being pretty makes your life better.
Mattel, the company that owns the Barbie brand, has decided that this stigma has gone on long enough and that it is time to take action. Through the new “Fashionistas” line, the company is working to make all girls feel beautiful.
Barbie now has three new body types along with seven skin tones and over 20 eye colors. While she is still one of the most sexualized dolls on the market, Barbie is miles ahead of her competitors when it comes to accepting other body types.
The “Fashionistas” have their own marketing campaign, #TheDollEvolves, that is trying to promote the changes. Richard Dickson, President and Chief Operating Officer of Mattel, commented in a recent press release as to why the new line is so necessary and timely.
“Barbie reflects the world girls see around them,” Dickson said. “Her ability to evolve and grow with the times, while staying true to her spirit, is central to why Barbie is the number one fashion doll in the world.”
They have good intentions but for too many young girls, the damage is already done and it will take more than a curvy Barbie to resolve the stigma we have created. From a young age, girls are told what beauty entails, a perfect balance of weight, height and makeup. For decades Barbie has embodied that balance, setting a much too perfect standard for young girls.
In a 2014 interview with FastCompany Design, Vice President of Design, Kim Culmone, caused quite an uproar when she denied this reality and said, “Barbie’s body was never designed to be realistic. She was designed for girls to easily dress and undress.”
Children learn by example, and even though Barbie was not supposed to have a realistic body, the message they are receiving is that they have to have a small waist to be successful and we haven’t told them otherwise.
It is wonderful that there are new shapes, sizes, and ethnicities coming out in the new line and I am not blaming a plastic doll for the fact that women everywhere are sexualized, objectified and fat shamed for not fitting into the pink Barbie box. This is 2016 though, it should not have taken this long to get a different shaped doll.
So let’s stop teaching children which doll is pretty or that weight is everything, and they can start to form their own image of beauty by looking in the mirror. Let’s teach them that there is more to life than just looks.