Barbie confronts racism, says 'Black people get a disadvantage that they don't deserve'

As millions of people across the globe are standing up against racism, Barbie, the beloved doll, also sat down with her friend Nikki to discuss White privileges and the struggles of racial bias. On October 7, ‘Barbie Vlogs’ uploaded the latest episode in which the pair talked about racism and what it truly means to be an ally. In the video, the two called out racism by name and demonstrated the importance of validating others’ experiences. 

The clip starts with Barbie acknowledging the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests and saying that people have been treated unfairly, and in some cases, even hurt by others because of the colour of their skin. Within seconds the attention then turns to Nikki, who goes on to speak about the times she was wrongly targeted or treated unfairly for being Black. Nikki tells Barbie about the different instances when she was judged based on the colour of her skin and how she was even undermined by a school teacher who assumed she aced a French honour club admission quiz because she ‘got lucky’. 

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Nikki said, “Barbie and I had a sticker-selling contest on the beach last month. We split up and went our separate directions to see who could sell the most. While I was on the boardwalk, beach security stopped me three times. The security officer thought I was doing something bad, even though I was doing exactly the same thing that you were doing”. 

Barbie’s campaign for gender equality and racism 

When Barbie asked why she didn’t stay in the French honour club to prove the teacher wrong, Nikki responded by saying that she doesn’t want to constantly ‘prove and reprove’ herself. She went on to say that the teacher supported Barbie right from the beginning, however, he didn’t support Nikki. “Usually when I talk about these things, people make excuses...People did these things to me because I was Black and they made the wrong assumptions about me,” Nikki said. 

“And they don't make those assumptions about white people, like me," Barbie said. "That's not fair, because that means that white people get an advantage that they didn't earn, and Black people get a disadvantage that they don't deserve,” she added. 

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The recent video is part of Barbie’s effort to shed light on current issues. Mattel company, in a statement to CNN, said that the vlogs are one component of a larger commitment by the firm towards girl empowerment. Mattel said that Barbie is campaigning gender equality to help close the racial injustice barrier girls face through the Dream Gap and the latest episode is one way the brand is addressing it. Further, the firm said that the goal of the episode is to help girls understand that there is a huge movement going on in the fight against racism, why people are marching together and the importance of reading and learning more about Black history. 

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