By Melissa Fenton 
Barbie shopping soon? Well, you may be pleasantly surprised what you find when you hit the infamous “pink” section of the toy store.
Mothers around the world have asked for years for modern Barbie to be a reflection of what today’s women can do, and Mattel finally listened. To commemorate International Women’s Day on March 8, Mattel will be releasing a new line of role model Barbies, and you’re going to want all of them.
In a press release by Mattel, Lisa McKnight, Barbie’s senior vice president said, “As a brand that inspires the limitless potential in girls, Barbie will be honoring its largest lineup of role models timed to International Women’s Day because we know that you can’t be what you can’t see.”
You can’t be what you can’t see! Amen to that!
For too many years, all our young girls were told what they could be was a pink Corvette driving, bikini and high heel wearing, RV relaxing beauty queen, until a few years ago when Mattel developed the new “Shero” line of dolls. The “Shero” line has already included the likes of gymnast Gabby Douglas, ballet dancer Misty Copeland, and Olympic fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad- just to name a few.
This week Mattel will release 17 more, and they will include modern-day role models, as well as three historical role models- all from diverse professional and ethnic backgrounds.
The modern day releases include Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins, the youngest snowboarding gold medallist Chloe Kim, Australian conservationist Bindi Irwin, and Italian soccer player Sara Gama. The three historical role model releases include Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, American aviator Amelia Earhart and mathematician Katherine Johnson. Those dolls will come with information about the personality and the contributions to society each woman has made.
Mattel is asking Barbie fans (both young and old) to tag and share their favorite women role models this week, and to use the hashtag #MoreRoleModels while doing so. They hope to spark a global call to action, and help recognize and promote all the amazing women role models out there.
(And hey, go ahead and put that Katherine Johnson doll in the pink Corvette. Because just because you’re a math genius doesn’t mean you can’t appreciate a cool sports car too!)
Feature image credit: Mattel
We’re proud to share @Barbie‘s commitment to inspiring girls through this amazing group of female role models in honor of #InternationalWomensDay
Join the conversation by sharing your role models using #MoreRoleModels. pic.twitter.com/WqI6GBtOcC
— Mattel (@Mattel) March 6, 2018
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