For the past decade, and longer, Barbie bodies have been spectacled and ridiculed for their distinctly thin (and visibly underweight bodies) by women who grew up and realized they were being groomed in social expectations even as small children. For the past few years, there has been talk of releasing a line of barbies no longer "thin", "flat", and "ridiculous" in size or appearance. Mattel, courtesy of Tania Missad, is releasing a new line of varied dolls with new combinations, as well as a interchangeable ankle to allow for shoes beyond heels. 'A 2006 British study (PDF) found that "girls exposed to Barbie reported lower body esteem and greater desire for a thinner body shape" than those who had been given dolls reflecting larger body types or no dolls at all.'
This parallels the early colonists struggle for independence from their ridiculous British government. We, Americans, saw that we should have basic human rights, and these were mocked and parodied by the Great Britain gov't, so we fought for what we saw was right. The modern consumer, seeing that Barbie's overly modelic body was leading to lower female confidence, decided to rise against society's indifference to acceptance, and spoke out for what is right. Women AND men should be able to walk confident that what they have is enough. No one can have the same thing, and no should want to walk the same footprints, or fit the same mold as someone else. Citizens of some other countries still lack fundamental rights that cannot be violated by anyone else. Although Barbie's body seems far off and irrelevant to human rights, it's more about choosing what is true than what is accepted.
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