Barbie Manufacturer Launched Powerful Gender-Neutral Doll Collection

This doll can be a girl, a boy, neither, or both. Mattel, the company that created Barbie, calls it the first gender-neutral doll in the world and hopes to erase the traditional taboos and redefine gender norms.

“Toys are a reflection of culture and as the world continues to celebrate the positive impact of inclusivity, we felt it was time to create a doll line free of labels,” said Kim Culmone, Senior Vice President of Mattel Fashion Doll Design.

The versatile dolls come in a range of skin tones. They can be styled with a long-haired wig and dressed in pants, shorts or skirts, as well as three different styles of sunglasses, shoes, and other accessories.

For some time, millennial parents have pushed back against gender stereotypes in toys. And major sellers have been listening. Their buying habits have already influenced Disney to banish “boys” and “girls” labels from its children’s costumes, inviting girls to dress as Captain America and boys as Belle. In 2018, Mattel also did away with “boys” and “girls” toy divisions, replacing them with non-gendered sections, for example, dolls or cars.

These dolls should sell $29.99 a pop, with the slogan “A doll line designed to keep labels out and invite everyone in.” With that move, the company is betting on where it thinks the country is going, even if this means alienating a substantial portion of its buyers. As a Pew Research survey demonstrates, while 76 percent of the public supports parents’ steering girls to toys and activities that are traditionally associated with boys, only 64 percent endorse steering boys toward toys and activities associated with girls.

Image credits: Mattel