Unapologetically Beautiful: The Story of Black Barbie
Black Barbie released on June 19, 2024
When director Lagueria Davis was a child, she and her sister would play with Barbies, draping slips over their hair to mimic the long, blonde hair of their dolls. However, she didn’t see her beautiful melanin skin or her luscious raven-colored locks reflected in her Barbie. Instead, she saw a little white doll that bore no resemblance to her. Now, Davis often wondered what it would mean to other little Black girls, like her, to have a world filled with Black Barbies.
Davis, an American filmmaker, directed the documentary as a tribute to the first Black Barbie and the hand her aunt had in making the doll happen. The film highlights the profound impact dolls can have on society, especially young people’s perceptions of beauty. Black Barbie' is an essential viewing for all those interested in the narrative and significance of the Black Barbie doll. The film was released on Netflix on June 19, 2024.
The story of the first Black Barbie begins in 1955, Beulah Mae Mitchell secured a toy testing job with Mattel and moved to Los Angeles. There, she had been asked what suggestions could make Barbie better. Mitchell simply asked, “Why not make a Barbie that looks like me?”
Davis, her niece, decided to film the heartfelt story with help from the women who made the doll possible. Told through intricate storytelling, the documentary features accounts from Black women who played pivotal roles in creating Black Barbie. This includes African American fashion designer Kitty Black Perkins, who became Mattel’s first Black designer for doll clothes and crafted the first Black Barbie in the early 1980s. Perkins said she wanted Black Barbie to represent what Black culture was.
Since her debut in the 80s, Black Barbie has become a beacon of hope for Black girls and women who lacked having toys that resembled them. Her stylish red dress and full lips filled millions of people, including Perkins, with pride upon seeing their first Black Barbie. In a post from Barbie on X, Perkins expressed that witnessing the joy of some of the little girls was deeply gratifying for her.
The Black Barbie pushed boundaries as many Black women expressed how much Black Barbie meant to them. For Monica Bailey, it meant the world to her. When Bailey was little, she mostly played with White dolls. From there, she would apply hair grease and put it on the doll's scalp to the roots, trying to make the doll resemble her. Even going as far as to color the doll’s blue eyes brown.
“I remember not feeling like I was beautiful because of my skin and my hair texture,” Bailey said. “And being around people who didn’t look like me or accepted me.”
Soon, Perkins designed a line of dolls called Shani and Friends, which followed the success of Black Barbie. Shani reflected several different shades to take after the African American community. Quickly adding to Perkins’ legacy, Stacey Mcbride-Irby came on board. As a doll designer, she was hired by Mattel to continue Perkins' footsteps to make more Black Barbies for the future.
The boundaries continued to expand as dolls were created, inspired by real Black women whose careers empower others. One such doll was inspired by 2016 fencing medalist Ibtihaj Muhammad. Muhammad is known for being the first American Muslim woman to wear a hijab while competing at the Olympic Games.
The first Black Barbie from Mattel made an unmistakable impact on the world. She became a symbol of inspiration and validation, affirming that everyone is valued for who they are and encouraging them to be who they want to be. Most importantly, Black Barbie allowed little girls who never saw themselves in the blue-eyed, blonde-haired White Barbie dolls to finally see their own reflection. She turned every little Black girl’s dream into a reality, leaving an unparalleled legacy like no other with a powerful message to Black girls everywhere: you are beautiful too.
