Boy, now that’s what we need! A homeless doll!
Mattel has just introduced their newest addition to the American Girl series — Gwen, the homeless kid. Gwen is the latest addition to the American Girl doll series which features dolls with detailed backstories & varied lives. You can learn more about the dolls here.
So I guess I have a lot of questions about how a toy company decided to it was a good idea to market a homeless doll. Gwen has a good story, though (a compassionate champion of the underdog/bullied). Maybe kids will learn from Gwen. Maybe Gwen will become a moral teacher.
Or maybe Gwen will just teach the rich bitches and Mean Girls how to be snobs a little early…
For some reason, I’m morally outraged by this doll, and I can’t quite put my finger on why. Perhaps some answers to the following questions would help me out:
1) WHY is she wearing a white dress? Isn’t that the worst outfit you could possibly give a homeless person?
2) Is she chubby because of her food stamp diet & its overload of starches? Please tell me that’s coincidence. Please.
3) Won’t having a doll that uses an armrest for a pillow completely freak out kids who live in financially-stressed homes? (Granted, those families probably won’t be buying the doll, but that doesn’t mean kids won’t be exposed to her elsewhere.)
4) To what organization will Mattel be donating a portion of the profits they get by charging $100 for a doll depicting a member of the homeless community?
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