Barbie Discusses Difficult Topics For Children

Barbie Discusses Difficult Topics For Children

Barbie Stands Against Racism

(source: Instagram TV/@barbie)

Written by Celeste Alyssa Gomez

October 14, 2020

One of our most childhood beloved toys posted a vlog that tackles racism. In this critical time, it is important to educate the youth about what is going on. Describing racism is not an easy topic and that is why it must be discussed. We must continue to read and learn, and Barbie reminds the youth that it is essential to listen and understand. Barbie invites her friend Nikki on her vlog series, and Nikki describes her experiences with racism.

Barbie may be a toy, but we’ve heard and seen this name throughout our life. Barbie marks an emotional toll on a child’s life. For a doll, she is a fashion icon and has become more inclusive with supporting different shapes, sizes, and colors. Famous celebrities such as Nicki Minaj have a Barbie Doll made like them. The Barbie Fashion world is influential, many designers have gotten inspired by the doll icon and have included it in fashion week shows.

Photography: Billboard/Barbie

Why am I talking about this? It is plain and simple, Barbie’s inclusive journey is growing and there are many children that look up to her. We should be able to love ourselves and feel accepted. The color of our skin is beautiful and we to make an impact. The internet and television sometimes tackle the topics parents are afraid of.
Photography: Instagram/@barbie

Now, the stories may not be necessarily true and even though they are dolls their presence makes an impact since we all know who they are. I’ve read many comments from Daily Blast LIVE that kept repeating “stupid” which was very hurtful. One comment was addressing how the video should have discussed different topics regarding discrimination such as height, weight, sexual orientation. I agree that Barbie should do this in future videos. However, heavy topics such as these should be addressed one topic at a time for a child. It is important that the child learns and understands fully so they can be attentive listeners. With Black Lives Matter, I believe they chose to focus on racism with Nikki, a character who is Black to describe the unfairness the community is experiencing.

In the vlog, Nikki talks about her experience selling stickers at the beach and how she was stopped due to the color of her skin whereas Barbie wasn’t. Barbie is an attentive listener and acknowledges how that was wrong. These are important lessons for children, and I am happy to see children’s shows talking about social issues. If you haven’t seen it go check it out on Instagram/@barbie or on YouTube/@Barbie

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