For Muslims, from Mattel(doll's name, Aroosa, means both bride and doll in Arabic. In Farsi too, Aroos/ak means bride/doll)
(doll looks like white barbie with frumpy clothes and a flimsy scarf on her head)
(i think i'm going to vomit)
posted by pomegranate queen at 7/23/2008
10 Comments:
OMG
Oh, Mattel. Just leave it alone since you can never get it right no matter who it is.
Sigh.
Yep, just like the black barbie looks like white barbie with brown painted skin. white is prototype, everything else evolves from that!!!!
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Considering most Iranian women straighten and dye their hair blond, this isn't so far off the mark ;)
haha! too funny!
i've always wanted to meet the one token ethnic who you know they had sitting in on the product development for this. you know, probably fatima-from-accounts. just so they could a) cover their asses, and b) feel good about themselves. i wonder if they let their rep speak? and i'd love to ask them what they said.
Shirin has a point. The fact that Aroosa means both bride and doll in Arabic is also interesting and a bit sad in my opinion.
shirin, don't forget the nose jobs and "skin lightening" facials.
lyric, i laughed so hard i nearly fell out of my chair. it's so sad but true.
fuck a colonial prototype.
fuck racist, shade-ist, beauty standards.
i'm buying my kids troll dolls (are those even around anymore??)
I don't know what it is about mainstream culture that is always apologizing for Barbie, or more often, not accepting the point at all.
During a stay in a kid's hospital, my daughter was given an "angel" barbie by a nurse of Caribbean descent. My daughter was still a baby and wasn't really interested in a doll anyway, but I was appalled.
Hey there...
If you feel strongly about it....write Mattel and share your distaste.... I did that once ...
I complained about the taste of a new cookie that came out...and I went into detail about what was wrong with the recipe...I sent off my email...
The company sent me a coupon and also included a letter inviting me to be a "taste tester" for their new cookie products...I would receive a pack of cookies (before they hit the store shelves) with a survey inside to fill out after eating the cookies! *LOL*
My coworkers were sooo impressed that packs and packs of cookies under my desk that they had never seen before...!!
Companies LOVE customer feedback...as long as it's useful feedback...some people just write "I hate it!!" and that doesn't help the marketing team to fix specific things about the product.
If you write a detailed letter to Mattel about WHY their marketing team failed...they will probably share it with their marketing team...and who knows... when you see the "new" Muslim barbie come out in time for next year...you will know that your voice was truly heard....
Consumer products companies DO pay attention to the voice of the consumers...they are trying to make money...they HAVE TO listen....
lisa
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