The debate over the latest push for a plus-sized Barbie is steeped in political correctness on both sides and ignores the children the toy is aimed at.
One side argues that Barbies aren’t of realistic dimension and the doll is guilty of influencing feelings of negative body image among young, impressionable girls.
The other side argue that the picture above shows an obese girl and that there is a responsibility to teach children that being overweight is not the ideal from a health standpoint.
My view is that Barbie has already had many decades of reproducing the same type of doll. It’s too late for the company to suddenly become inclusive. So your going to have one overweight doll amongst thousands of stick figures? That’s a great way to make someone overweight feel good, put them in a room crowded with models!
If they release the Barbie pictured above it will be the source of more bullying because one can’t help comparing it against every other Barbie ever produced. Even the marketing pitch shows the comparison.
Let’s take the responsibility of making our children body confident out of the hands of Mattel and lets own this problem and do something about it.
1. We need to tell our children that they are wonderful people, regardless of their size. If you think an overweight girl is unhealthy, try an overweight girl racked with guilt and self loathing.
2. Let’s not put such an emphasis on looks and instead replace the focus with more important attributes like kindness, empathy, loyalty and integrity.
3. Let’s help our young find their talents and show them how they can use their unique abilities to contribute to society in a meaningful way.
Plus sized Barbie is a meaningless, insincere and tokenistic gesture at a time when we need to show our kids that they really matter!
Click on the link to read Study Claims that Being Attractive can give you Better Grades
Click on the link to read The Unique Challenges that Body Image Represents for Females
Click on the link to read An 8-Year-Old’s Take on Body Image
Click on the link to read A Father’s Advice to His Daughter About Beauty
Click on the link to read The Call to Stop Telling Your Children they are Beautiful
Tags: Average Size Barbie, Barbie, Barbie Body, Barbie Size, Body Image, Childhood Obesity, Education, Health, Nutrition, Parenting, Plus Size Barbie, Plus Size Models, Plus-Size, plus-sized Barbie, Political Correctness, REgular Barbie
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