Mattel introduces first Barbie doll representing a person with autism
Mattel on Monday unveiled a first-ever version of the Barbie doll representing a person with autism.
The new doll expands the Barbie Fashionistas line, which aims to offer kids more diverse representations of beauty.
Previous Barbie Fashionistas have included a doll with a prosthetic leg, another with hearing aids, a wheelchair, a doll with the skin condition vitiligo, which causes patches of skin to lose their pigment, a first-ever Barbie representing a person with Down syndrome and a Barbie with Type 1 diabetes.
Mattel MAT 0.00%↑ said it partnered with the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), a non-profit disability rights organization run by and for autistic people to empower the autistic community, in creating the doll.
The nearly two-year-long collaboration, according to the toymaker, focused on intentional design choices — from creating a new face sculpt to customizing the sensory-sensitive fabric of the doll’s dress – recognizing that the doll represents how individuals on the autism spectrum may experience, process and express the world around them, and that every autistic experience is unique.
The doll’s design allows for flexible movement of the elbows and wrists, enabling “stimming, hand flapping and other hand gestures, which some members of the autistic community use as a way to process sensory information or to share excitement,” Mattel said.
Each doll comes with a finger clip fidget spinner, noise-cancelling headphones and a tablet, which represent some of the devices that people with autism use in their daily lives.
“It is so important for young autistic people to see authentic, joyful representations of themselves, and that’s exactly what this doll is,” Colin Killick, executive director of ASAN, said in a statement. “Partnering with Barbie allowed us to share insights and guidance throughout the design process to ensure the doll fully represents and celebrates the autistic community, including the tools that help us be independent.”
The doll, priced at $12, is available on Mattel’s website and at Target TGT 0.00%↑ and will roll out at Walmart stores nationwide in March.