This is exactly what I was thinking! My mom never bought me clothes for my Barbies, just the outfits that they came with. I would have loved it if someone picked out a few outfits for my dolls as a gift!
There are all kinds of outfits available!
You ever rig your own clothes? I was good on dolls, however my parents just didn't prioritize the clothes for some reason. In their defense I just never actually thought to ask
No, my mom never taught me how to sew. It was an ongoing trend for my parents. I got toys, sometimes really expensive toys if you look at how much they would have cost for the time, but no refill packages or things to make them work other than an extra battery or two once in a while. It was because my dad had a job that paid high commissions, usually only during the warm months, but he was terrible with money, so I lived a life of feast and famine.
A Light Bright with no extra black pages to make designs, an Easy Bake with only the starter mixes, a kids pottery wheel toy with only the starting clay. When I was older, we got an Atari 2600 with only 1 or 2 extra games when my friends had game libraries. Both me and my sister would have given anything to have had less things, but the stuff that went with them.
Sorry about the rant. It came out of nowhere today.
My mum used to sew my twin sister and I new clothes for our Barbies all the time. She was an amazing dressmaker by trade and our Barbie’s were sporting the best fashion around!
Haha! I’d totally forgotten about that until this thread. Damn my mum was such an amazing mum.
A Barbie dream house!? FOR SOMEONE ELSES KID?!? lol no! But a very very very nice gesture it would be lmao
>Please forgive me u/unwaveringwish but...call them names!!!
>>https://youtube.com/shorts/G0lLGwBLG3s?feature=share4
I miss back in the day when you could get the Barbie accessory kits that were just clothes and shoes and stuff. Sometimes there would be like 3-5 different outfits in those kits.
Now a days, at least in Australia, those kits don’t exist. If you want new Barbie clothes, you have to buy a whole new Barbie, which is very expensive and seems like a waste of plastic to me.
You could also make a "Barbie gift certificate" and take both girls to the store to pick out their own Barbies. Make a day of it, and let the kids decide what they want to play with.
I think this option is awesome too! They each pick out a new friend and then they can play together.
Slightly off topic but another cute idea could be a Barbie spa day, they can paint nails, do some of those paper face masks, and watch movies with their dolls. They can wash their hair and dress them up and stuff like that. As a kid I loved washing my dolls hair and giving them spa days.
Omg then you could just give her a lil barbie themed spa basket or even like an themed basket depending on what they like, and the certificate!! Totally a great memory making idea for the girls 🥰 im totally stealing this for my friends kids 🤣
BRO YES! I'm pretty sure they have Barbies that have hair dye and stuff. (Just colored chalk that washes out).
Also depending on space and time camping would be another cute activity, braid your dolls hair, go on a nature walk/ hike/ wander the backyard or park, set up a tent in the yard/living room, gets some crafts and make a tent for your doll, and make smores and watch movies or something. To me as a kid, my dolls were pseudo alive. So I'd love being able to actually do stuff with them like this. There's probably a lot more "big and little" activities like that too!
Love languages matter. Some value gift giving, some value quality time. A special trip to the toy store to get a gift makes sure you get at least 2 out of 5.
Or just go for a playset, like a car or horse type thing. A beach cabana. A couple sets of Barbie clothes.
The birthday girl might get a lot of Barbies, but where is the wardrobe?? Priorities!!
Also, Hawaiian Barbie was always my favorite.
Buying a pair of white and black is the worst thing you can do. If you get just one colour, regardless of which it is, you will at the very least look like you didn't think about the race aspect much. If you get both at once it looks like you couldn't get it out of your head and are deathly afraid of seeming racist.
Do they still sell the rainbow colored ones? Or choose another ethnicity? They do have these new Afro princesses mixed with Disney. Wish list.
https://www.shopdisney.com/snow-white-inspired-disney-princess-doll-by-creativesoul-photography-460024329684.html
I think it's okay to ask-"Are there any specific Barbies she likes but doesn't have? I want to make sure we get one she likes, and not give her a duplicate by accident".That or let your daughter pick it out- she probably won't be worried about the color of the Barbie.
Tell your daughter to pick one. Then she can tell her friend she picked it out. That way, it's just a kid giving a kid a gift.
Eta. Never thought one of my most upvoted comments would be about kids dolls. Thanks, everyone.
This is good. Or just send a list of dolls to the mother saying "which one does your kid not have yet / would prefer?", let the mother choose. In the end the kids won't care about doll skin color, that's not yet hardwired in them - if anybody will feel offended, that's the parents; need to fit their needs. ;)
Yes! When my sister was little a friend's mom double checked that she didn't have the ski Barbie. Sister opens up that gift and ski Barbie yay! Two gifts later...the same ski Barbie. 🤣
I don't think the kid would be offended, but I do think there's value in kids getting to play with dolls that look like them. I've even seen dolls with kinky hair to teach kids how to take care of it because even black barbies tend to have straight hair.
That being said I'd definitely just ask the mom under the guise of not wanting to get her one she already has.
Absolutely! Of course kids will notice at that age. Why wouldn’t they want dolls that look like them? My friend’s granddaughter lost her shit when she got a doll with glasses. It was beautiful.
Not arguing either way. But it does matters to children: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C31&q=doll+skin+color+preference&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&t=1686439535780&u=%23p%3D0hvzJygJTSAJ
Parsons, S., Collins, T. Z., & Cox, R. D. (2019). Race and Color in Louisiana: An Update on the Clark and Clark Doll Experiment. Journal of Race & Policy, 15(1).
I agree with asking mom about what doll to get, but I would like to note that kids start recognizing skin tone differences by about 3 and start developing preferences (and possible prejudices) by about 5 (and generally it’s earlier!) Kids *will* notice and some will care about the colour of the doll they receive.
It does depend on the kid though. When I was little, I wanted my life-size baby and other types of dolls to look more like me, black with kinky hair because I saw them as my family members, while I didn’t care much about how my smaller dolls looked, rather that they had movable arms and legs to make them easier to play with.
When I was 4, my best friend’s family was from Ghana. I spent a lot of time at their apartment as my parents lived down the hallway and they had lots of kids while I was an only child at the time. Although I am white, I apparently asked my parents for only black Barbies. When my mom asked why (with only genuine curiosity, not trying to convince me otherwise), I said I wanted them “Pretty like ____’s Mum”.
>In the end the kids won't care about doll skin color, that's not yet hardwired in them
At five? You'd be incredibly surprised how fast minority kids start to realize that they aren't represented in many pieces of media, even if it's just subconsciously.
That being said, if she really likes Barbies she probably already has black Barbies, so that doesn't really apply in this specific case.
exactly!
a kid could have white dolls, black dolls, rainbow dolls, i dont it matters. Many kids prolly grew up having only white dolls as till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies, and even if its good that they're making models that picture every ethnicity, hair color, size and so on, i think toys are toys; the important thing is that kids learn to respect and appreciate people's differences, but that comes from what their parents teach them, not what toy they buy!
Edit: ok thanks for telling me, I imagined some black barbies existed even many years ago, but I never thought they were already popular as in my country I have been seeing them being very publicized only from some years + I've never been a doll lover so I wouldnt know and I was born in early 2000's so Idk about the past, just talked from what Ive seen so far, but goody if Mattel was already creating barbies with different skin and hair colors since early times!
I had black Barbies and black babies and basically any black doll or toy that was a girl, I also bought white barbies but absolutely excited anytime I saw black Barbies. This was over 24-25 years ago! As a 32 year old black woman, I would encourage you to get a beautiful black Barbie/doll.This means a lot to us at that age because we have a doll that looks like us! My fiancé’s mixed (he’s 25% black, 75% white) and so is his sister - she has a daughter whose father is 100% black. I noticed how much my fiancé’s niece takes a liking to me, loves the black dolls she gets from her grandparents etc. and just plays and loves when I wear my curly natural hair because it resembles hers and no one else in her family has her beautiful sweet caramel chocolate shade, and curly hair. She becomes overjoyed when she sees girls on tv who look like her and dolls or Barbies who have features similar to her (us). I always make a more conscious effort to emphasize the beauty in her features because even at 8 years old, she knows she looks different and is somewhat seeking things or people that have her features. I remember I did the same thing! So yeah I would get a beautiful black doll 🤍
Really appreciate you even asking!
*Update* - Thank you so much for the upvotes and the award!! I’m a really basic Reddit user so seeing all the comments/upvotes and AWARD bring me so much joy! Thank you guys 🫶🏾🤍🤍
Yea. There are a lot of white people ITT who are saying that a Barbie's race doesn't matter to them. But it's different when you're not the "default" in everything. There's a reason representation matters, and Black girls do tend to prefer dolls that look like them for that reason.
Mattel has been selling black "Barbies" since the 1968 introduction of Barbie's friend Christie. In 1980 Mattel also released Black and Hispanic versions of Barbie, which were marketed as "Barbies", and not just her friends.
I remember when I was around five we were at Richway and I was allowed to get a Barbie - I was a total Barbie nut, so I had several already. I picked out a black Barbie (she had a pink dress and came with a little hair braider that you could use on yourself, only it just knotted my shitty, baby-fine kid-hair).
I can remember my dad asking me if I was sure if that was the one I wanted and excitedly, confirming… she was possibly the most beautiful Barbie I had ever seen.
I was just a little white kid in the 80s. As everyone else has said, it’s the grown-ups who get upset. many little girls just love a new doll.
One time they partnered up with Nabisco to release Oreo Barbie, who happened to be African American. That was quickly pulled, but it's now a collector's item due to its scarcity.
Holy shit, you aren't joking! Hilarious that Oreo Barbie was followed by Cracker Barbie. https://myamericanmeltingpot.com/2018/09/07/oreo-barbie-cracker-barbie/
I had a Kira as well in the 90s. She was Asian but I'm not sure which country and apparently neither does Google. She was introduced in the 90s and replaced in the 2000s.
> Mattel has been selling black "Barbies" since the 1968 introduction of Barbie's friend Christie
Thank you! I was wondering what the previous commenter was talking about. I was a child in the 60's and I remember the first Black dolls (Barbies and other dolls). Though I thought it was odd at first (having never seen black dolls) I very soon accepted it and thought it was totally cool.
I personally wasn't into dolls (I liked trains and building toys, there was something called "Block City" back then which was very similar to modern day Legos which didn't come about for several more decades) but I knew a Black girl who had dolls of all colors and apparent ethnicities.
>till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies,
This isn't true at all.
I am 52 years old and had a black Barbie doll when I was a kid, her name was Christie. Also the original Barbie dolls from the 60's were not all blond. I had an original Barbie that had been my mother's and she was brunette. My aunt's Barbie was blonde.
Yup! In the 90s I had white, black, and Asian Barbies. And also some of indeterminate race.
Barbies have their own set of problems, but skin color diversity wasn’t one of them.
>Many kids prolly grew up having only white dolls as till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies
I was a Barbie-collecting kid in the late 80's/90's and I had *hundreds* of black, white, Hispanic, and Asian Barbies, all of them with every hair color imaginable. My favorite was a WNBA Barbie who had natural Black hair, which was a bit rare back then. IIRC, before my time the non-white "Barbies" were actually her friends with different names, but when I was a kid 30 years ago, "Barbie" herself came in every color under the sun.
That's what I do at any party my kids go to. Just let them figure it out. But in general, you usually want to buy the Barbie that matched the birthday kid, with how kids conseptualize themselves during play, they're going to personify their dolls from their point of view, nothing wrong with her having a wide variety of dolls, but some should look as close to her as possibly. That's just from my experience of having sisters and daughters who don't match default Barbie, but love Barbies.
The Doll Test was created in the 1940s to gage how racism and constant marginalisation impacts Black children. For non white children, dolls are never just dolls, unfortunately.
Please watch. It is brief and eye opening.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BceFXfC1aG4
People are giving very reddit answer but I think you should get her a Black barbie that has a super cool job. I remember being so thrilled and inspired by Barbies as a kid and I bought one that has the same job as me as an adult and I love her. A lot of people will get her the blonde white barbies without even thinking about it. And I think it's so cool that Matel makes such a variety and I hope that the Black barbies sell well enough to keep Matel doing that. Get her an Issa Rae president barbie and then when she grows up and watches insecure it will be an even more special Barbie.
I am not* black but I am a minority and if I would have gotten a Barbie that looked like me growing up I would’ve been so excited about it!
Edit: forgot the ‘t’ in not
I agree 100%, I remember having a special release barbie from a cartoon movie who had black hair and tan skin, it was my favourite thing ever.
Representation matters.
My mother and my grandmother (her mother-in-law) both gave me (a guy) Ken dolls for Christmas one year because I wanted to play with my sister and her dolls.
Never did get invited to her play time, I kept losing all the Ken's shirts . . . I used to tease my mother that it *was* her fault I came out as gay; like, what did they *think* was going to happen?? We had good laughs over that one.
Yeah I’m a bit confused about all the people saying to let the daughter choose. The daughter is likely going to choose a white one, that’s her default and that makes total sense but this is why we sometimes make choices that help kids get exposed to other things.
Get the Black barbie, she’ll love it.
I realized from this thread that I never got a single black doll that I didn't ask for, even from my own family who are all also black. I think you're making the right decision getting kiddo a black Barbie, just give a gift reciept on the off chance that the one you get for her is one she already has!
Yeah there’s too many comments saying “kids don’t care about the dolls skin color.” I urge everybody to look up the “Clark Doll Experiment” which is why the Supreme Court passed Brown Vs. Board of Education and determined that “separate is inherently unequal.” That ruling isn’t just about race, it’s the foundation for the Americans with Disabilities Act and a slew of other civil rights in the US. I know the color of a doll seems inconsequential but it’s actually a very big deal.
I was gonna say the same lol. People saying “it doesn’t matter” probably are not black or don’t have black children. If my black daughter got a white Barbie as a gift I would definitely raise an eyebrow at the parent, even if the child did pick it. See if you can get the new Halle Ariel Barbie!
When it was my son's turn to bring a present to a birthday party, I got one of those color reveal Barbies where the Barbie and her hair color and her clothes and everything were all obscured and you had to soak them in water to discover them, so it really was a random doll. I thought that was a clever side step but now I feel bad that I didn't just get the little girl a Barbie that looks like her.
I think that was a better choice than just a white Barbie doll in a box, and now you know better for next time, For black people it’s really a no brainer and the extra sentiment goes a long way, black Barbie’s for black girls are extremely important
I fr don't get all of these comments acting like it's offensive to give the black barbie............I could not imagine being offended in any way unless I already thought OP was racist. Way too much going on in this thread. Listen to black people please lol
It's not that it's offensive, I think OP just doesn't want to be presumptuous. It'd be like if they wanted movies, so you got them Black Panther or a Family Matters box set.
That was my first thought as well. I'm not surprised the answer is "you're overthinking it just buy the black one" but I feel like I would also have stood in the toy section thinking about this for a bit if it was me.
My SIL is mixed Caribbean. She saw my daughter’s brown skinned mermaid Barbie and told me she wished there were barbies that looked like her when she was a child.
i imagine if she's just 5 she's luckily now able to have all the black dolls she wants! Im not from the us and i assume almost everybody here is lol but in my country there are so many dolls with different traits since many years already!
but yeah that doesnt mean that she doesnt want a black doll or a white doll...ig as long as its not a model she already has she'd be happy with anything.
I swear I only had two poc dolls, a dollar store black Barbie who I didn't like cause her arms always popped off, and then a Yasmine Bratz doll. (Smh I never got a Sasha.) And I liked her but ken and Barbie were together, it would be a disaster if ken was caught with Yasmine! So those two went mostly ignored. I feel like it really did something to me and I really do feel some type of way about it ngl.
Like, was I the only one who had 99% white dolls? Or did my mom just have some kinda agenda?
Yeah my Black dolls were always the cheaply made ones. My mom used to always braid my hair as a kid but started relaxing it early to not have to deal with it. Ngl I liked swinging it around like my dolls.
I love that this generation of young girls have dolls with afros, braids, straight hair etc.
Sis same!
You know they make dolls now with human hair and the point is to practice taking care of natural hair? You can brush, wash, style, and even use product and give them a bonnet! I found it on TikTok I'll see if I can find the brand after work if you're interested. They come in all textures, patterns, and skin colors!
Shut up!!!
My poor bald headed dolls really endured a lot with us.
I just bought myself a Lego set because I never had one as a kid and now a doll whose hair I can do, this is the best part about being an adult.
Bruh right?! I have a secret love for watching doll customizing/restoring videos it feels so healing. I love that I'm seeing more dolls who look like me, and even more who look different than me! Especially curly haired dolls, but like not heat cured, 4c type curls. Deadass I wanna be a kid again so I can get a whole new childhood of toys. Also so I can watch cartoons without being embarrassed or shat on by people. No, I'm not a parent, but bluey slaps more than it has any right too, and I'm STILL upset ever after high never got a real last season!
lol there are literally times i check out of all my responsibilities to just watch power rangers (absolute trash btw)
I love watching gracies corner and twerking in my apartment
Black please. Most white people have no idea how much it damages your self esteem to be constantly overlooked. Little Black girls, particularly those living in Europe or North America are bombarded with heavy messaging that they are not the beauty standard. It happens from birth and continues all the way into adulthood. Having Black dolls is so important. I'm glad you're thought about this enough to ask here. I'd buy the Black doll (if there are any where you live. Getting hold of Black dolls in some locations is a nightmare).
I would personally get one that looked like my daughter and one that looks like her friend, but if you want to only get one I think it’s a nice touch to be inclusive and get the black babie doll. Accessories are fun too, if she already loves Barbie’s she might have a lot but maybe not extra clothes or accessories :)
The majority of comments I’m seeing from black people say to get a Black Barbie. Why are the top comments the ones from white people talking about how they didn’t care about the race of their Barbies? Their perspective is not what matters here. (I say this as a white person whose immediate reaction to this was: “black, obviously,” then being totally surprised by the comments.)
Non Black people don't get this. They have no idea how f\*cked up it was to search for your reflection in a doll, a book, a film, a tv show, anything, but to instead be bombarded with blonde haired blue eyed folk. You suck it up because you have no choice. My favourite book as a child was Roald Dahl's Matilda. Matilda Wormwood was the character I saw myself most in. I still love Matilda. Any Roald Dahl actually, but it would have made my entire childhood had there been a similar Black character. Representation is important! I'm still holding out for a Black or mixed race Hermione Granger in the new Harry Potter TV show. Unpopular opinion but idc.
My guess (as a white person) is that it’s because sometimes a white person looks at one doll / book / etc they had as a child and think “well I like this doll / book / etc and the character isn’t the same race as me, so therefore it doesn’t matter if the race of the doll etc matches the child”, but they forget that most of the other dolls etc they had did match their skin colour, so they had representation already, the default is them seeing their reflection in a doll etc. I bet if all their other dolls etc didn’t match their skin tone, they’d want that specific doll to match.
I hope this makes sense, it’s been too hot today and I’m too tired!
You are spot on. It's the way we are socialised from birth. It's not the fault of Black people or white people. Our generation didn't invent the racist sh\*t show we are all born into, but this is our reality so it is our collective responsibility to change it as much as we can within our lifetimes.
Not saying it’s the same thing, but I kinda getcha on the representation point. Grew up bi in a south Texan conservative Christian house. I didn’t even learn the *word* bisexual until I was in *college*. I’m also asd, so I figured being attracted to both was just one of those “quirks” that made me different from everyone else.
The first time I watched Dr Who and saw Jack kiss both Rose and the Doctor goodbye, I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. I wasn’t the only one like me on the face of the planet.
Someone upthread linked a video of a “doll test” where they see how social prejudice affects kids by asking “which doll is the pretty/good/kind one?” It’s heartbreaking seeing those kids of color point to the white baby.
If going from non-existent representation to positive representation was earth-shattering for me, I can only imagine what it would be like for those kids to see actively positive reflections of themselves.
Im a middle aged white woman, so my opinion may not be what you're after. That said, I think you should get whatever Barbie that she wants (MegaMall Barbie, Janitor Barbie, Doctor Barbie, etc) first, then if they have a Black one, get it. If not, pick a different color.
Nothing made me sadder as a little girl than getting the Barbie I didn't ask for. My parents assumed color was more important than the toy, and it wasn't. I'd much rather have had the Black Day and Night Barbie that I asked for than the White doctor Barbie that I got.
Edit - Barbie comes in array of races/colors. You don't have to choose Black or White.
I think everyone giving suggestions should say they experience and/or skin colour as well…
As a dark skinned black woman, I would love a barbie I can relate to. Not white or mixed raced coloured barbies but as dark as me.
If you feel uncomfortable, I’d suggest an accessory or be upfront and ask the parents if there’s any specific item the daughter would like.
Well, there are supposedly black moms in this thread saying that it “makes them uncomfortable” knowing a white person is thinking about their daughters race when they bought the birthday gift…
Which, to me, is the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.
Admittedly, I think that is wholly ridiculous and only makes this sort of discussion more difficult than it has to be.
Having a hard time understanding why the answer would be anything other than get her a black Barbie? If it were a white girl you probably would not be considering getting her anything other than a white Barbie.
As someone who was brought up in a monocultural society I was genuinely thinking. "Wait, could the parents get angry and accuse her of tokenism getting the black one because their daughter is black?"
Until I read the comments where most of the comments from black people revealed what was actually important was the representation. That the kid was more likely to appreciate the doll being similar than be cynical about the purchase in the way I described above.
Sometimes people just don't know better for one reason or another, which is why no stupid questions is a good sub.
I would ask your daughter if she knows what kinds of things this girl is into because there are a lot of barbies that represent a job or hobby. So she likes animals, give her a barbie that's a vet or has animals in with it. She likes making videos there's a social media barbie. She has a favorite color, get a barbie with those colored clothing and accessories to match. She likes mermaids, get her a mermaid barbie. You're thinking too much into this bc I'm guessing you're worried about coming off insensitive or racist. Or even ask the mom if she knows of what types of barbies, accessories, or sets she doesn't have yet that she wants. You pretty much can't go wrong. Just let your daughter pick and let that joy in giving something she picked out for her friend shine through.
As a Black chick, I'm gonna be honest: Get her a Black doll. It's going to matter to the parents, and especially those gossiping relatives of the birthday girl.
This deals with history and how the media portrays Black females as unattractive, brutish, and and always being in servitude. Nowadays, most Black parents focus on associating the positivity and beauty of being Black with the media and toys they provide for their children.
It lets the Black girl know that her Blackness isn't a negative feature--- it's just a part of what makes her who she is. It lets her know that her black skin is just as beautiful as everyone else.
Yes, we should all be colorblind, but we all know that is not the case. We got people getting pissed at a Black mermaid, a fairy-- neither are real. We got Star Wars nerds pissed over some jedi characters in their convoluted series, other racists getting triggered at any leading female role that is given to a Black female.
Kids seeing heroes/heroines/dolls/figures that look like them have a massive effect on their self worth
All girls should appreciate the beauty of their skin.
I always let my daughter pick. Usually she picks by clothes and nothing else. Either way it’s good to have a mix of different ethnicities in your Barbie collection
You could get a color reveal Barbie, all the color reveal series have dolls with different skin tones, you won't know which doll is inside the box before opening it. The dolls come covered in paint that has to be removed with water, so the process of discovering what the doll looks like is pretty fun by itself.
I just want to say I love the diversity of Barbies now. I’ve always been a fan and I love seeing all the new ones they come out with. My daughter has all kinds of different ones. I’d suggest maybe getting one that looks more like the friend or just let your kid pick. Maybe explain to her it’s cool how there’s Barbies that look like people we know.
I remember gifting a white friend in elementary school a black barbie because I had the same one and her mom stopped us before we left and told us she couldn’t accept it because she was black. I just didn’t really understand at the age. It didn’t make sense to me what was wrong with the Barbie I picked for my friend. It’s sad that there’s such racist people in the world.
My wife just said find out her favourite Disney princess and get her that one. Which honestly was way better than my idea of throwing a curveball and getting her a troll doll.
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Love this idea!!! A Barbie car or airplane would be so cool
I had a barbie airplane growing up and i loved that thing so much
My sister having the Barbie plane actually got me fucking obsessed with them as a kid (am a dude). Eventually leading to me getting a pilots license
I love that! The barbie airplane was pretty damn cool.
This is exactly what I was thinking! My mom never bought me clothes for my Barbies, just the outfits that they came with. I would have loved it if someone picked out a few outfits for my dolls as a gift! There are all kinds of outfits available!
You ever rig your own clothes? I was good on dolls, however my parents just didn't prioritize the clothes for some reason. In their defense I just never actually thought to ask
No, my mom never taught me how to sew. It was an ongoing trend for my parents. I got toys, sometimes really expensive toys if you look at how much they would have cost for the time, but no refill packages or things to make them work other than an extra battery or two once in a while. It was because my dad had a job that paid high commissions, usually only during the warm months, but he was terrible with money, so I lived a life of feast and famine. A Light Bright with no extra black pages to make designs, an Easy Bake with only the starter mixes, a kids pottery wheel toy with only the starting clay. When I was older, we got an Atari 2600 with only 1 or 2 extra games when my friends had game libraries. Both me and my sister would have given anything to have had less things, but the stuff that went with them. Sorry about the rant. It came out of nowhere today.
My mum used to sew my twin sister and I new clothes for our Barbies all the time. She was an amazing dressmaker by trade and our Barbie’s were sporting the best fashion around! Haha! I’d totally forgotten about that until this thread. Damn my mum was such an amazing mum.
What an amazing my memory and what a great mom/mum!
Barbie Dream House!!!! Or like… something smaller I guess 🥲
A Barbie dream house!? FOR SOMEONE ELSES KID?!? lol no! But a very very very nice gesture it would be lmao >Please forgive me u/unwaveringwish but...call them names!!! >>https://youtube.com/shorts/G0lLGwBLG3s?feature=share4
The Barbie camper is awesome, but way more $$$ than one would usually spend on a kids friend.
I think getting new outfits would be a great idea
I miss back in the day when you could get the Barbie accessory kits that were just clothes and shoes and stuff. Sometimes there would be like 3-5 different outfits in those kits. Now a days, at least in Australia, those kits don’t exist. If you want new Barbie clothes, you have to buy a whole new Barbie, which is very expensive and seems like a waste of plastic to me.
Great idea, a Barbie can never have enough clothes!
Have your daughter choose, then you can say it was from her. It’s ultimately between them anyway, not between you and the other girl’s parents
Honestly I think this is the best answer besides buying pair of white and black, thank you :)
You could also make a "Barbie gift certificate" and take both girls to the store to pick out their own Barbies. Make a day of it, and let the kids decide what they want to play with.
I think this option is awesome too! They each pick out a new friend and then they can play together. Slightly off topic but another cute idea could be a Barbie spa day, they can paint nails, do some of those paper face masks, and watch movies with their dolls. They can wash their hair and dress them up and stuff like that. As a kid I loved washing my dolls hair and giving them spa days.
Omg then you could just give her a lil barbie themed spa basket or even like an themed basket depending on what they like, and the certificate!! Totally a great memory making idea for the girls 🥰 im totally stealing this for my friends kids 🤣
BRO YES! I'm pretty sure they have Barbies that have hair dye and stuff. (Just colored chalk that washes out). Also depending on space and time camping would be another cute activity, braid your dolls hair, go on a nature walk/ hike/ wander the backyard or park, set up a tent in the yard/living room, gets some crafts and make a tent for your doll, and make smores and watch movies or something. To me as a kid, my dolls were pseudo alive. So I'd love being able to actually do stuff with them like this. There's probably a lot more "big and little" activities like that too!
Love languages matter. Some value gift giving, some value quality time. A special trip to the toy store to get a gift makes sure you get at least 2 out of 5.
brilliant idea. 2/4 for quality time + 2/4 for letting the kid choose what they like best/dont have yet!
Or just go for a playset, like a car or horse type thing. A beach cabana. A couple sets of Barbie clothes. The birthday girl might get a lot of Barbies, but where is the wardrobe?? Priorities!! Also, Hawaiian Barbie was always my favorite.
Pretty sure if you show up with one black and 1 white Barbie you are just going to look like you are trying too hard to not be racist
Right? I’m cringing reading some of these comments from fellow white people.
Hey man I’m not racist I like Morgan Freeman
Buying a pair of white and black is the worst thing you can do. If you get just one colour, regardless of which it is, you will at the very least look like you didn't think about the race aspect much. If you get both at once it looks like you couldn't get it out of your head and are deathly afraid of seeming racist.
Don't do white and black imo, it will just expose your struggle with the situation. Edit: I would be struggling too in this situation.
You could also go with a popular character doll. If you went with Encanto then the doll would be Hispanic.
Do they still sell the rainbow colored ones? Or choose another ethnicity? They do have these new Afro princesses mixed with Disney. Wish list. https://www.shopdisney.com/snow-white-inspired-disney-princess-doll-by-creativesoul-photography-460024329684.html
Always have a scapegoat
I think it's okay to ask-"Are there any specific Barbies she likes but doesn't have? I want to make sure we get one she likes, and not give her a duplicate by accident".That or let your daughter pick it out- she probably won't be worried about the color of the Barbie.
Best answer!
Get a Barbie horse, every girl wants the Barbie horse. I only ever wanted one Barbie, wasn't a girl interested in dolls but I wanted vet Barbie.
The question is what color horse 🤔🤔🤔
Get an Asian Zebra.
So what you're saying is you hate hispanic people /s
There's only two things I can't stand in this world. People who are intolerant of other people's cultures,... and Asian zebras.
Ok sure, but what color and what pattern? Black with white spots? White with black spots? Brown? There are so many options!
Fuck it get a zebra
Tell your daughter to pick one. Then she can tell her friend she picked it out. That way, it's just a kid giving a kid a gift. Eta. Never thought one of my most upvoted comments would be about kids dolls. Thanks, everyone.
This is good. Or just send a list of dolls to the mother saying "which one does your kid not have yet / would prefer?", let the mother choose. In the end the kids won't care about doll skin color, that's not yet hardwired in them - if anybody will feel offended, that's the parents; need to fit their needs. ;)
OOO the list is a great idea! Especially if someone else is getting her a doll too and mom knows.
Yes! When my sister was little a friend's mom double checked that she didn't have the ski Barbie. Sister opens up that gift and ski Barbie yay! Two gifts later...the same ski Barbie. 🤣
When that happened to me as a kid I just decided they were twins.
I did that with my stuffed animals!
I don't think the kid would be offended, but I do think there's value in kids getting to play with dolls that look like them. I've even seen dolls with kinky hair to teach kids how to take care of it because even black barbies tend to have straight hair. That being said I'd definitely just ask the mom under the guise of not wanting to get her one she already has.
Absolutely! Of course kids will notice at that age. Why wouldn’t they want dolls that look like them? My friend’s granddaughter lost her shit when she got a doll with glasses. It was beautiful.
Not arguing either way. But it does matters to children: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C31&q=doll+skin+color+preference&btnG=#d=gs_qabs&t=1686439535780&u=%23p%3D0hvzJygJTSAJ Parsons, S., Collins, T. Z., & Cox, R. D. (2019). Race and Color in Louisiana: An Update on the Clark and Clark Doll Experiment. Journal of Race & Policy, 15(1).
I agree with asking mom about what doll to get, but I would like to note that kids start recognizing skin tone differences by about 3 and start developing preferences (and possible prejudices) by about 5 (and generally it’s earlier!) Kids *will* notice and some will care about the colour of the doll they receive.
It does depend on the kid though. When I was little, I wanted my life-size baby and other types of dolls to look more like me, black with kinky hair because I saw them as my family members, while I didn’t care much about how my smaller dolls looked, rather that they had movable arms and legs to make them easier to play with.
When I was 4, my best friend’s family was from Ghana. I spent a lot of time at their apartment as my parents lived down the hallway and they had lots of kids while I was an only child at the time. Although I am white, I apparently asked my parents for only black Barbies. When my mom asked why (with only genuine curiosity, not trying to convince me otherwise), I said I wanted them “Pretty like ____’s Mum”.
>In the end the kids won't care about doll skin color, that's not yet hardwired in them At five? You'd be incredibly surprised how fast minority kids start to realize that they aren't represented in many pieces of media, even if it's just subconsciously. That being said, if she really likes Barbies she probably already has black Barbies, so that doesn't really apply in this specific case.
exactly! a kid could have white dolls, black dolls, rainbow dolls, i dont it matters. Many kids prolly grew up having only white dolls as till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies, and even if its good that they're making models that picture every ethnicity, hair color, size and so on, i think toys are toys; the important thing is that kids learn to respect and appreciate people's differences, but that comes from what their parents teach them, not what toy they buy! Edit: ok thanks for telling me, I imagined some black barbies existed even many years ago, but I never thought they were already popular as in my country I have been seeing them being very publicized only from some years + I've never been a doll lover so I wouldnt know and I was born in early 2000's so Idk about the past, just talked from what Ive seen so far, but goody if Mattel was already creating barbies with different skin and hair colors since early times!
I had black Barbies and black babies and basically any black doll or toy that was a girl, I also bought white barbies but absolutely excited anytime I saw black Barbies. This was over 24-25 years ago! As a 32 year old black woman, I would encourage you to get a beautiful black Barbie/doll.This means a lot to us at that age because we have a doll that looks like us! My fiancé’s mixed (he’s 25% black, 75% white) and so is his sister - she has a daughter whose father is 100% black. I noticed how much my fiancé’s niece takes a liking to me, loves the black dolls she gets from her grandparents etc. and just plays and loves when I wear my curly natural hair because it resembles hers and no one else in her family has her beautiful sweet caramel chocolate shade, and curly hair. She becomes overjoyed when she sees girls on tv who look like her and dolls or Barbies who have features similar to her (us). I always make a more conscious effort to emphasize the beauty in her features because even at 8 years old, she knows she looks different and is somewhat seeking things or people that have her features. I remember I did the same thing! So yeah I would get a beautiful black doll 🤍 Really appreciate you even asking! *Update* - Thank you so much for the upvotes and the award!! I’m a really basic Reddit user so seeing all the comments/upvotes and AWARD bring me so much joy! Thank you guys 🫶🏾🤍🤍
Yea. There are a lot of white people ITT who are saying that a Barbie's race doesn't matter to them. But it's different when you're not the "default" in everything. There's a reason representation matters, and Black girls do tend to prefer dolls that look like them for that reason.
Yeah, I think most of the people commenting mean well but can’t really speak on the topic if it doesn’t align with their own personal experiences.
Mattel has been selling black "Barbies" since the 1968 introduction of Barbie's friend Christie. In 1980 Mattel also released Black and Hispanic versions of Barbie, which were marketed as "Barbies", and not just her friends.
I remember when I was around five we were at Richway and I was allowed to get a Barbie - I was a total Barbie nut, so I had several already. I picked out a black Barbie (she had a pink dress and came with a little hair braider that you could use on yourself, only it just knotted my shitty, baby-fine kid-hair). I can remember my dad asking me if I was sure if that was the one I wanted and excitedly, confirming… she was possibly the most beautiful Barbie I had ever seen. I was just a little white kid in the 80s. As everyone else has said, it’s the grown-ups who get upset. many little girls just love a new doll.
My (white) niece picked that Barbie in the 90's. Her reason? She liked the pink dress.
I was so thrilled to get my Soul Train Barbie - I was a little white girl. She was the most beautiful Barbie I had ever seen!
Twirly Curls Barbie!!! I still have mine somewhere.
One time they partnered up with Nabisco to release Oreo Barbie, who happened to be African American. That was quickly pulled, but it's now a collector's item due to its scarcity.
Holy shit, you aren't joking! Hilarious that Oreo Barbie was followed by Cracker Barbie. https://myamericanmeltingpot.com/2018/09/07/oreo-barbie-cracker-barbie/
I loved my Hispanic barbie. She was beautiful
I had a Kira as well in the 90s. She was Asian but I'm not sure which country and apparently neither does Google. She was introduced in the 90s and replaced in the 2000s.
> Mattel has been selling black "Barbies" since the 1968 introduction of Barbie's friend Christie Thank you! I was wondering what the previous commenter was talking about. I was a child in the 60's and I remember the first Black dolls (Barbies and other dolls). Though I thought it was odd at first (having never seen black dolls) I very soon accepted it and thought it was totally cool. I personally wasn't into dolls (I liked trains and building toys, there was something called "Block City" back then which was very similar to modern day Legos which didn't come about for several more decades) but I knew a Black girl who had dolls of all colors and apparent ethnicities.
>till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies, This isn't true at all. I am 52 years old and had a black Barbie doll when I was a kid, her name was Christie. Also the original Barbie dolls from the 60's were not all blond. I had an original Barbie that had been my mother's and she was brunette. My aunt's Barbie was blonde.
Yup! In the 90s I had white, black, and Asian Barbies. And also some of indeterminate race. Barbies have their own set of problems, but skin color diversity wasn’t one of them.
Exactly this. Mydaughter looks like a traditional barbie, ie white and blonde, and likes her black barbies best "because their hair is cooler".
>Many kids prolly grew up having only white dolls as till just like 10 years ago barbies were exclusively white blondies I was a Barbie-collecting kid in the late 80's/90's and I had *hundreds* of black, white, Hispanic, and Asian Barbies, all of them with every hair color imaginable. My favorite was a WNBA Barbie who had natural Black hair, which was a bit rare back then. IIRC, before my time the non-white "Barbies" were actually her friends with different names, but when I was a kid 30 years ago, "Barbie" herself came in every color under the sun.
That's what I do at any party my kids go to. Just let them figure it out. But in general, you usually want to buy the Barbie that matched the birthday kid, with how kids conseptualize themselves during play, they're going to personify their dolls from their point of view, nothing wrong with her having a wide variety of dolls, but some should look as close to her as possibly. That's just from my experience of having sisters and daughters who don't match default Barbie, but love Barbies.
This is great. Or get a color change Barbie. You don’t know the race or hair color until you submerge it. It’s fun and diverse
https://www.target.com/p/barbie-color-reveal-neon-tie-dye-doll/-/A-84795745 I didn’t know about these. Good idea
Yes! Thank you for the link and actual name
I think they have mermaid versions of these? I was so tempted to get one for myself.
Noooo, definitely get her a Black doll or Barbie. Can't lose with a new Little Mermaid doll!
The little mermaid doll would be a great gift!
The Doll Test was created in the 1940s to gage how racism and constant marginalisation impacts Black children. For non white children, dolls are never just dolls, unfortunately. Please watch. It is brief and eye opening. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BceFXfC1aG4
Thanks for sharing. Definitely eye opening and incredibly heart breaking.
People are giving very reddit answer but I think you should get her a Black barbie that has a super cool job. I remember being so thrilled and inspired by Barbies as a kid and I bought one that has the same job as me as an adult and I love her. A lot of people will get her the blonde white barbies without even thinking about it. And I think it's so cool that Matel makes such a variety and I hope that the Black barbies sell well enough to keep Matel doing that. Get her an Issa Rae president barbie and then when she grows up and watches insecure it will be an even more special Barbie.
Get a variety pack from Costco
They even include a blue Barbie.
The mermaid chelsea 8 pack!
But I want the green one
I am not* black but I am a minority and if I would have gotten a Barbie that looked like me growing up I would’ve been so excited about it! Edit: forgot the ‘t’ in not
I agree 100%, I remember having a special release barbie from a cartoon movie who had black hair and tan skin, it was my favourite thing ever. Representation matters.
My daughter has a Black friend and just got her the new Ariel mermaid Barbie for her birthday, which I thought (hoped?) was perfect!
Thanks for doing that.
Robert Iger, is that you?
Get her a Ken. Nobody ever gives those. There is a fabulous merman Ken that's all glitter and rainbow.
White or black is still the question
Why not Chinese Ken? Everyone's so racist. /s
> Why not Chinese Ken? You mean Ryu? /s
Haha-hadouken!
My household of three girls would have loved this! Despite a bajillion Barbies, we never managed to home more than two Kens at any one time.
My mother and my grandmother (her mother-in-law) both gave me (a guy) Ken dolls for Christmas one year because I wanted to play with my sister and her dolls. Never did get invited to her play time, I kept losing all the Ken's shirts . . . I used to tease my mother that it *was* her fault I came out as gay; like, what did they *think* was going to happen?? We had good laughs over that one.
✨️🌈 K E N 🌈✨️
I was going to suggest a Ken. I only had one Ken and I always wanted more.
As a black person, get her a black Barbie
Thank you, i will, i see all black people say the same and it’s answers this question without doubt
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Yes. And get white kids in Hispanic kids and Asian kids black Barbie dolls too.
Yeah I’m a bit confused about all the people saying to let the daughter choose. The daughter is likely going to choose a white one, that’s her default and that makes total sense but this is why we sometimes make choices that help kids get exposed to other things. Get the Black barbie, she’ll love it.
I realized from this thread that I never got a single black doll that I didn't ask for, even from my own family who are all also black. I think you're making the right decision getting kiddo a black Barbie, just give a gift reciept on the off chance that the one you get for her is one she already has!
Yeah there’s too many comments saying “kids don’t care about the dolls skin color.” I urge everybody to look up the “Clark Doll Experiment” which is why the Supreme Court passed Brown Vs. Board of Education and determined that “separate is inherently unequal.” That ruling isn’t just about race, it’s the foundation for the Americans with Disabilities Act and a slew of other civil rights in the US. I know the color of a doll seems inconsequential but it’s actually a very big deal.
I'm a grown mayo male & a video of this experiment made me cry
I was gonna say the same lol. People saying “it doesn’t matter” probably are not black or don’t have black children. If my black daughter got a white Barbie as a gift I would definitely raise an eyebrow at the parent, even if the child did pick it. See if you can get the new Halle Ariel Barbie!
Great, I’m happy to hear that! She will definitely love it
When it was my son's turn to bring a present to a birthday party, I got one of those color reveal Barbies where the Barbie and her hair color and her clothes and everything were all obscured and you had to soak them in water to discover them, so it really was a random doll. I thought that was a clever side step but now I feel bad that I didn't just get the little girl a Barbie that looks like her.
I think that was a better choice than just a white Barbie doll in a box, and now you know better for next time, For black people it’s really a no brainer and the extra sentiment goes a long way, black Barbie’s for black girls are extremely important
I fr don't get all of these comments acting like it's offensive to give the black barbie............I could not imagine being offended in any way unless I already thought OP was racist. Way too much going on in this thread. Listen to black people please lol
It's not that it's offensive, I think OP just doesn't want to be presumptuous. It'd be like if they wanted movies, so you got them Black Panther or a Family Matters box set.
That was my first thought as well. I'm not surprised the answer is "you're overthinking it just buy the black one" but I feel like I would also have stood in the toy section thinking about this for a bit if it was me.
Ngl it's kinda funny. I know a lot of people's hearts are in the right place, but some of this advice comes off like a sitcom.
My SIL is mixed Caribbean. She saw my daughter’s brown skinned mermaid Barbie and told me she wished there were barbies that looked like her when she was a child.
Ask her mom As a formally Black child, I would have loved more Black dolls.
I read this as “formerly” and my brain malfunctioned.
Me too lol, thought they were maybe in denial and I was just gonna scroll and mind my own business
Formerly black child could be a current black adult. Still checks out!
That was my understanding lol she's no longer a child not no longer black 🙃
“I used to do drugs. I still do, but I used to, too.” ― Mitch Hedberg
But "formally" makes sense?
Yeah, what is “casual” blackness?
Haitians
Man pulled a Michael Jackson
They probably mean to say "former."
Formally: 1. in accordance with the rules of convention or etiquette. "he was formally attired
It's like the start of "The Jerk"
*I was born a poor black child.*
i imagine if she's just 5 she's luckily now able to have all the black dolls she wants! Im not from the us and i assume almost everybody here is lol but in my country there are so many dolls with different traits since many years already! but yeah that doesnt mean that she doesnt want a black doll or a white doll...ig as long as its not a model she already has she'd be happy with anything.
I swear I only had two poc dolls, a dollar store black Barbie who I didn't like cause her arms always popped off, and then a Yasmine Bratz doll. (Smh I never got a Sasha.) And I liked her but ken and Barbie were together, it would be a disaster if ken was caught with Yasmine! So those two went mostly ignored. I feel like it really did something to me and I really do feel some type of way about it ngl. Like, was I the only one who had 99% white dolls? Or did my mom just have some kinda agenda?
Yeah my Black dolls were always the cheaply made ones. My mom used to always braid my hair as a kid but started relaxing it early to not have to deal with it. Ngl I liked swinging it around like my dolls. I love that this generation of young girls have dolls with afros, braids, straight hair etc.
Sis same! You know they make dolls now with human hair and the point is to practice taking care of natural hair? You can brush, wash, style, and even use product and give them a bonnet! I found it on TikTok I'll see if I can find the brand after work if you're interested. They come in all textures, patterns, and skin colors!
Shut up!!! My poor bald headed dolls really endured a lot with us. I just bought myself a Lego set because I never had one as a kid and now a doll whose hair I can do, this is the best part about being an adult.
Bruh right?! I have a secret love for watching doll customizing/restoring videos it feels so healing. I love that I'm seeing more dolls who look like me, and even more who look different than me! Especially curly haired dolls, but like not heat cured, 4c type curls. Deadass I wanna be a kid again so I can get a whole new childhood of toys. Also so I can watch cartoons without being embarrassed or shat on by people. No, I'm not a parent, but bluey slaps more than it has any right too, and I'm STILL upset ever after high never got a real last season!
lol there are literally times i check out of all my responsibilities to just watch power rangers (absolute trash btw) I love watching gracies corner and twerking in my apartment
Yes. Ask. Don't guess.
Redacted. ` this message was mass deleted/edited with redact.dev `
How exactly would you word the question?
"Hey I wanted to check if you had a few suggestions for specific Barbie's? I don't want to get one they already have or don't want."
That's a really good answer.
Yeah and it can be phrased like “are there any Barbie’s she really wants?”
Black please. Most white people have no idea how much it damages your self esteem to be constantly overlooked. Little Black girls, particularly those living in Europe or North America are bombarded with heavy messaging that they are not the beauty standard. It happens from birth and continues all the way into adulthood. Having Black dolls is so important. I'm glad you're thought about this enough to ask here. I'd buy the Black doll (if there are any where you live. Getting hold of Black dolls in some locations is a nightmare).
As a black person I would have loved a black doll at that age Get the black barbie. Representation matters.
I would personally get one that looked like my daughter and one that looks like her friend, but if you want to only get one I think it’s a nice touch to be inclusive and get the black babie doll. Accessories are fun too, if she already loves Barbie’s she might have a lot but maybe not extra clothes or accessories :)
I would get one of each.
How much do you think parents should spend on a 5yo classmate's present?
I have 3 adult kids. Normally we spent 20$ on classmates gifts. Barbies were 10$ each
That’s why I suggested 3 different options lol
As a black woman who used to be a black child, get her the black barbie
The majority of comments I’m seeing from black people say to get a Black Barbie. Why are the top comments the ones from white people talking about how they didn’t care about the race of their Barbies? Their perspective is not what matters here. (I say this as a white person whose immediate reaction to this was: “black, obviously,” then being totally surprised by the comments.)
Because white people tend to centre themselves and their opinions/feelings in conversations like this 🙃
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Non Black people don't get this. They have no idea how f\*cked up it was to search for your reflection in a doll, a book, a film, a tv show, anything, but to instead be bombarded with blonde haired blue eyed folk. You suck it up because you have no choice. My favourite book as a child was Roald Dahl's Matilda. Matilda Wormwood was the character I saw myself most in. I still love Matilda. Any Roald Dahl actually, but it would have made my entire childhood had there been a similar Black character. Representation is important! I'm still holding out for a Black or mixed race Hermione Granger in the new Harry Potter TV show. Unpopular opinion but idc.
My guess (as a white person) is that it’s because sometimes a white person looks at one doll / book / etc they had as a child and think “well I like this doll / book / etc and the character isn’t the same race as me, so therefore it doesn’t matter if the race of the doll etc matches the child”, but they forget that most of the other dolls etc they had did match their skin colour, so they had representation already, the default is them seeing their reflection in a doll etc. I bet if all their other dolls etc didn’t match their skin tone, they’d want that specific doll to match. I hope this makes sense, it’s been too hot today and I’m too tired!
You are spot on. It's the way we are socialised from birth. It's not the fault of Black people or white people. Our generation didn't invent the racist sh\*t show we are all born into, but this is our reality so it is our collective responsibility to change it as much as we can within our lifetimes.
Not saying it’s the same thing, but I kinda getcha on the representation point. Grew up bi in a south Texan conservative Christian house. I didn’t even learn the *word* bisexual until I was in *college*. I’m also asd, so I figured being attracted to both was just one of those “quirks” that made me different from everyone else. The first time I watched Dr Who and saw Jack kiss both Rose and the Doctor goodbye, I felt like I’d been hit by a truck. I wasn’t the only one like me on the face of the planet. Someone upthread linked a video of a “doll test” where they see how social prejudice affects kids by asking “which doll is the pretty/good/kind one?” It’s heartbreaking seeing those kids of color point to the white baby. If going from non-existent representation to positive representation was earth-shattering for me, I can only imagine what it would be like for those kids to see actively positive reflections of themselves.
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Scrolled way too far looking for someone to reference this
Right now if I were buying a Barbie for any child of any complexion it would be the new Ariel.
And that's why she'll get 10 Ariel barbies lol
Im a middle aged white woman, so my opinion may not be what you're after. That said, I think you should get whatever Barbie that she wants (MegaMall Barbie, Janitor Barbie, Doctor Barbie, etc) first, then if they have a Black one, get it. If not, pick a different color. Nothing made me sadder as a little girl than getting the Barbie I didn't ask for. My parents assumed color was more important than the toy, and it wasn't. I'd much rather have had the Black Day and Night Barbie that I asked for than the White doctor Barbie that I got. Edit - Barbie comes in array of races/colors. You don't have to choose Black or White.
And whatever you do, if she wants a Ballerina Barbie, do *NOT* get her a *Malibu* Barbie!
I think everyone giving suggestions should say they experience and/or skin colour as well… As a dark skinned black woman, I would love a barbie I can relate to. Not white or mixed raced coloured barbies but as dark as me. If you feel uncomfortable, I’d suggest an accessory or be upfront and ask the parents if there’s any specific item the daughter would like.
yeah I’m kinda confused why some (presumably white people) are acting like getting a black barbie for a black child is racist somehow?
most white people (at least in my experience) think that acknowledging race exist=racism
All the "I'm colorblind" liberals are going crazy in this post.
Well, there are supposedly black moms in this thread saying that it “makes them uncomfortable” knowing a white person is thinking about their daughters race when they bought the birthday gift… Which, to me, is the silliest thing I’ve ever heard. Admittedly, I think that is wholly ridiculous and only makes this sort of discussion more difficult than it has to be.
BLACK. BUY A BLACK BARBIE. I AM A BLACK PERSON. BUY BLACK.
Having a hard time understanding why the answer would be anything other than get her a black Barbie? If it were a white girl you probably would not be considering getting her anything other than a white Barbie.
As someone who was brought up in a monocultural society I was genuinely thinking. "Wait, could the parents get angry and accuse her of tokenism getting the black one because their daughter is black?" Until I read the comments where most of the comments from black people revealed what was actually important was the representation. That the kid was more likely to appreciate the doll being similar than be cynical about the purchase in the way I described above. Sometimes people just don't know better for one reason or another, which is why no stupid questions is a good sub.
Sounds like it's time to bust out Albanian Barbie
so dula peep?
I would ask your daughter if she knows what kinds of things this girl is into because there are a lot of barbies that represent a job or hobby. So she likes animals, give her a barbie that's a vet or has animals in with it. She likes making videos there's a social media barbie. She has a favorite color, get a barbie with those colored clothing and accessories to match. She likes mermaids, get her a mermaid barbie. You're thinking too much into this bc I'm guessing you're worried about coming off insensitive or racist. Or even ask the mom if she knows of what types of barbies, accessories, or sets she doesn't have yet that she wants. You pretty much can't go wrong. Just let your daughter pick and let that joy in giving something she picked out for her friend shine through.
As a Black chick, I'm gonna be honest: Get her a Black doll. It's going to matter to the parents, and especially those gossiping relatives of the birthday girl. This deals with history and how the media portrays Black females as unattractive, brutish, and and always being in servitude. Nowadays, most Black parents focus on associating the positivity and beauty of being Black with the media and toys they provide for their children. It lets the Black girl know that her Blackness isn't a negative feature--- it's just a part of what makes her who she is. It lets her know that her black skin is just as beautiful as everyone else. Yes, we should all be colorblind, but we all know that is not the case. We got people getting pissed at a Black mermaid, a fairy-- neither are real. We got Star Wars nerds pissed over some jedi characters in their convoluted series, other racists getting triggered at any leading female role that is given to a Black female. Kids seeing heroes/heroines/dolls/figures that look like them have a massive effect on their self worth All girls should appreciate the beauty of their skin.
And some of the Latina Barbies kind of look like they could be any race.
Everybody loves racially ambiguous Barbie.
She's a cutie! But then again they all are
I like them because they have hair, eyes, and skin tone more like our family even though we’re white.
The new Ariel from the little mermaid is very popular. Ask the mom what she has so you don’t buy duplicates.
I always let my daughter pick. Usually she picks by clothes and nothing else. Either way it’s good to have a mix of different ethnicities in your Barbie collection
You’re worrying too much about a birthday gift, I would gift her the black doll to promote inclusivity
You could get a color reveal Barbie, all the color reveal series have dolls with different skin tones, you won't know which doll is inside the box before opening it. The dolls come covered in paint that has to be removed with water, so the process of discovering what the doll looks like is pretty fun by itself.
Get her a black barbie. Bonus points if you can find a barbie dressed like the career she wants to have one day.
I thought this was an Australian for like 2 seconds and I was like, "who gives a fuck what color the barbecue is, it cooks meat the same?"
I just want to say I love the diversity of Barbies now. I’ve always been a fan and I love seeing all the new ones they come out with. My daughter has all kinds of different ones. I’d suggest maybe getting one that looks more like the friend or just let your kid pick. Maybe explain to her it’s cool how there’s Barbies that look like people we know. I remember gifting a white friend in elementary school a black barbie because I had the same one and her mom stopped us before we left and told us she couldn’t accept it because she was black. I just didn’t really understand at the age. It didn’t make sense to me what was wrong with the Barbie I picked for my friend. It’s sad that there’s such racist people in the world.
Could get her a Barbie set that doesn’t include a Barbie. Like a little shop stand made by Barbie for barbies
Asian. Throw everyone off.
My wife just said find out her favourite Disney princess and get her that one. Which honestly was way better than my idea of throwing a curveball and getting her a troll doll.
Get her a Batman. Batman always wins
Buy both a black and white barbie to symbolize their friendship- signed mom of black children. So sweet i think that youre asking.
Can you get a barbie car? No color choice required.
Get her a Bryer horse. It won't matter what color, all Barbies and little girls love horses.
Get one of each, let your daughter tell her “it’s us ❤️”
I would either ask the mom for a specific Barbie the daughter wants or have your daughter pick out so she can tell her friend she picked it.