Ghetto Barbie Doll To Hit Shelves. Did Mattel take it too far?

from nydailynews
http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/10/01/2009-10-01_not_all_gals_embracing_latest_black_barbie.html



Not all girls embrace latest black Barbie doll, say Mattel toys went too far with rap-detail

BY Simone Weichselbaum
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Thursday, October 1st 2009, 5:37 AM
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Barbie from the block got mixed reviews Wednesday from city girls inspecting the newest spin on the old-school toy.

"So In Style" dolls, a fresh take on the black Barbie, hit store shelves this week, featuring a group of plastic friends sporting shiny bling, big earrings and fancy sneakers.

Many of the city girls liked the dolls - Grace, Kara and Trichelle - but some felt the Mattel toy company went too far with the rap-inspired details.

"Not all black people like hip hop," said Barbara Mootoo, 15, of Manhattan, looking at Kara's silver rope chain necklace. "They gave her a chain like a 50Cent video."

Tyaine Danclaire, 15, of the Bronx, liked Trichelle's straight, long hair because it looked like "a weave," but she thought the idea "was sorta racist."

"They say black girls are ghetto with the gold earrings, with the big bling; I don't agree with that," she said.

Mattel said veteran Barbie designer Stacey McBride-Irby, an African-American mother of two, created the dolls so her kids could have toys that look like their neighborhood friends.

Standard black Barbie dolls have been around since 1980 and are darker versions of their blond counterparts.

The new $30.99 dolls have "authentic-looking facial features" such as fuller lips, a wider nose ... and curlier hair," Mattel said.

"I like it," said Rachel Kahn, 9, of Charlotte, N.C., visiting relatives in Manhattan. "It is hip hop. It is Beyoncé."

Nikki Wright, 12, of East Harlem, showed off her braided hair extensions and gold hoops in her ears while holding a Trichelle doll.

"They look like people where we live," the seventh-grader said. "I wear big earrings. The weave. Things that we use."

simonew@nydailynews.com

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/money/2009/10/01/2009-10-01_not_all_gals_embracing_latest_black_barbie.html#ixzz0ShN6UMKZ









I guess asking for a Michelle Obama doll this early in the game would've been a lil too much, so instead the opt for Lil Kim. Peep the video on the dailynews website. Is a ghetto barbie doll necessary or is this some backhanded racism?

i don't think there's anything wrong with them. their demographic is young girls, and young girls of color around my way look more or less like that. i'm a dude that tries to find racism in every little thing but i don't think they went too far

I looked at the video on mute so I could judge what I see unbiasedly, and from what I saw, those dolls don't look racist to me. Anytime any product involves or is aimed for a black audience, people always start screaming racism.

Nothing is taking it to far in the capitalist system

My mom only buys black barbies for my little sister.

Not as bad as I thought it would be, but a portable boombox???