What an amazing moment for actress Laverne Cox. Because of her impact as an advocate for LGBTQ rights, thanks to Mattel, the company behind Barbie, Laverne has made history as the very first trans person to have a Barbie doll in their honour.
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“I can’t believe it. I love her outfit. What excites me most about her being out in the world is that trans young people can see her and maybe get to purchase her and play with her, and know that there’s a Barbie made by Mattel, for the first time, in the likeness of a trans person,” Laverne shares.
Laverne also says that ‘Barbie represents so much more than a toy,’ “I think in an environment where trans children have been used as a political football, when over 250 pieces of anti-trans legislation have been introduced in state legislatures all over the country in 2022 alone, and access to gender-affirming healthcare has been denied by policies signed into law in my home state of Alabama, in Arkansas and other states… That in this environment where trans kids are being attacked, that this can also be a celebration of transness, and also a space for them to dream, understand and be reminded that trans is beautiful. That there’s hope and possibility for them to be themselves.”
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Laverne says she was also ‘very involved’ in the design process, “I was like, ‘Can we make her look more like me? And more African American?’ and we had a conversation about highlights and lowlights because I’m blonde most of the time now, but I’m a Black girl, so I need a dark root. And we had a whole conversation about how they can’t do that, but they could do dark low lights.”
“I wanted her to wear multiple outfits, but that wasn’t cost effective. You want the doll to be affordable. So I was like, ‘What if she had one outfit that could peel off and become multiple outfits?’ So that’s what we designed and came up with,” she continues.
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Lisa McKnight, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Barbie and Dolls at Mattel said in a statement, “We are proud to highlight the importance of inclusion and acceptance at every age and to recognize Laverne’s significant impact on culture with a Tribute Collection Barbie.”
Laverne also reflected on her childhood, and explains how she wasn’t allowed to play with Barbie dolls as a child, “I begged my mother for a Barbie doll and she said no because I was assigned male at birth, and when I was in my 30s, I was in therapy and telling my therapist that I was denied the opportunity to play with Barbie dolls. And my therapist said, ‘It’s never too late to have a happy childhood, and what you should do for your inner child is go out and buy yourself a Barbie doll.’ I played with my Barbie, and I told my mom what my therapist had said. And that first Christmas after that, my mom sent me a Barbie doll, and she’s been sending me Barbies for Christmas and for my birthday.”
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The Laverne Cox Barbie is available now, and retailing for $39.99.
