Opinion: Yes, Barbie is a feminist — just don’t ask her creators
1 year, 5 months ago

Opinion: Yes, Barbie is a feminist — just don’t ask her creators

LA Times  

Almost 30 years ago, when I researched and wrote a history of the people and ideas that led to the creation of Barbie, I had no doubt she would be as talked about in 2023 as she was in 1959, when she first appeared. While I suspect every armchair gender theorist will be deconstructing Gerwig’s movie soon, Barbie’s resurgence of popularity has made me consider her relationship to the various waves of feminism that have pummeled her surfboard since she first took form here in Southern California. Margot Robbie’s best Barbie-inspired looks From Enchanted Evening Barbie to Solo in the Spotlight Barbie, Margot Robbie’s ‘Barbie’ movie premiere looks have been inspired by the doll itself. Day-to-Night Barbie had a pink power suit, a briefcase and came out at the same time as the dolls’ startling new anthem, “We Girls Can Do Anything.” Despite the promise of this message, the women behind the campaign, at Mattel and at Ogilvy & Mather, Barbie’s ad agency, refused to identify as “feminists.” It was still a stigmatized word in corporate America. They may, of course, have had other motivations: According to a 2016 Washington Post article, Barbie’s share of the global dolls and accessories market had declined every year since 2009.

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