It's been a massive week for toy manufacturer Mattel Incorporated. The brand this week launched its first blind Barbie and now announces the launch of its black Down Syndrome Barbie. The latest addition forms part of the Barbie Fashionistas series offering more than 175 looks in a variety of skin tones, eye colours, hair colours and textures, body types, disabilities and fashions.
This includes dolls with vitiligo, dolls that use a wheelchair or a prosthetic limb, a doll with hearing aids and a doll without hair. The 2024 Fashionistas dolls aim to advance Barbie’s continued goal of reflecting a multi-dimensional view of beauty and fashion, allowing more children to see their world reflected through play. Senior Vice President of Barbie and Global Head of Dolls, Krista Berger, said the company recognises that Barbie is much more than just a doll.
"She represents self-expression and can create a sense of belonging. We proudly introduce a Black doll with Down syndrome to our Barbie Fashionistas line, reinforcing our commitment to creating products that represent global belonging and inclusivity in the doll aisle," she said. Last year, Mattel Inc launched its first-ever Barbie doll with Down syndrome, which won the Corporate Social Responsibility Initiative of the Year award presented by the Toy Association.
This year, Barbie again partnered with the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) to introduce its next doll with Down syndrome to the Barbie Fashionistas 2024 line-up. Thro.