AG's new "Gwen the homeless girl" doll ...

[sbell111]

It's not about the cost to me even though it's in the OP's post. As I posted previously, this is a prime opportunity for Mattel to show a giving spirit and donate, if not in kind, then a % of each sale of this doll to homeless shelters.

Why would they need to? One could argue that by producing this doll that they are increasing awareness of the homelessness problem, thereby resulting in many other people 'giving to the cause' who would not normally do so.

In the course of a year, we give much more than the cost of a WDW vacation. There's a family that my family has more or less adopted. We've helped and are helping to put their kids through college. There are grade school kids that we help to clothe.

I've volunteered at a food bank for 25 years.

The statement about needing a free ticket is unnecessarily harsh. Many here on the DIS have big hearts and do volunteer work. If someone is going to volunteer strictly to get a WDW ticket, then it is not volunteering because they expect a form of compensation.

Journalism today is not what it was when I was a writer in the 70's. Fact checking has gone the way of the dinosaurs. Journalists use blogs for facts. I'm not saying it's right, it's just the way it is.

I have my Barbie doll from 1964. She's in perfect condition and believe me, I played with this doll every day for years. The AG dolls are quality too.

While this is all terrific, I can't figure out what it has to do with the OP.

 

[5 'LIL *TWINKERS*]

Really what is the problem. I saw the photo and she was a nice looking doll. She did not have dirt on her face, tangled hair and a begging cup.

You would think nothing of some kid dressed up as a homeless child? What would you think if they DID have dirt on their face, tangled hair and a begging cup? So, as long as they don't have those 3 characteristics, its an exeptable doll?
JMHO, I still think the whole thing is in bad taste. Its sad for a little, homeless girl to see a doll that looks like her, that has no home, no sense of security, no bed of her own, no place to go, among many other things. Do you really think that homeless girl/girl who was previously homeless, would want this doll? Maybe she would if she was trying to educate other kids about her situation or homelessness in general.
Other than that.....

My kids would be saddened by this doll if they saw it.

 

[luvmy3]

Seriously, y'all, they're a joke.

Google "white trash barbie" and you'll get hilarious descriptions to go along with the photos-we have one for each neighborhood here in Atlanta, and it seems like it applies all over the united states-there's a white trash barbie version for oregon, etc.

Did you ever see the SNL commercial for gansta (b-word) barbie? If you haven't you should google it

 

[SaraJayne]

You would think nothing of some kid dressed up as a homeless child? What would you think if they DID have dirt on their face, tangled hair and a begging cup? So, as long as they don't have those 3 characteristics, its an exeptable doll?
JMHO, I still think the whole thing is in bad taste. Its sad for a little, homeless girl to see a doll that looks like her, that has no home, no sense of security, no bed of her own, no place to go, among many other things. Do you really think that homeless girl/girl who was previously homeless, would want this doll? Maybe she would if she was trying to educate other kids about her situation or homelessness in general.
Other than that.....

My kids would be saddened by this doll if they saw it.

I don't know how old you are, but kids have been dressing as hobo's for Halloween for many years.

 

[rie'smom]

It's not about the cost to me even though it's in the OP's post. As I posted previously, this is a prime opportunity for Mattel to show a giving spirit and donate, if not in kind, then a % of each sale of this doll to homeless shelters.



In the course of a year, we give much more than the cost of a WDW vacation. There's a family that my family has more or less adopted. We've helped and are helping to put their kids through college. There are grade school kids that we help to clothe.

I've volunteered at a food bank for 25 years.

The statement about needing a free ticket is unnecessarily harsh. Many here on the DIS have big hearts and do volunteer work. If someone is going to volunteer strictly to get a WDW ticket, then it is not volunteering because they expect a form of compensation.

Journalism today is not what it was when I was a writer in the 70's. Fact checking has gone the way of the dinosaurs. Journalists use blogs for facts. I'm not saying it's right, it's just the way it is.

I have my Barbie doll from 1964. She's in perfect condition and believe me, I played with this doll every day for years. The AG dolls are quality too.

Why would they need to? One could argue that by producing this doll that they are increasing awareness of the homelessness problem, thereby resulting in many other people 'giving to the cause' who would not normally do so.
While this is all terrific, I can't figure out what it has to do with the OP.

It has to do with the post I quoted. The poster implies that many of us who don't agree with the homeless doll would only volunteer to get a free admission to WDW.
Anyone who needs a toy company to raise their awareness of the homeless people leads a very sheltered life.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

I can't believe all this controversy over Gwen! I am curious if people who think the doll is in poor taste have actually seen the movie or read the books. She's Chrissa's friend, and the fact that she lives in a shelter is no big deal to Chrissa. I never remember her living in a car. Honestly, the movie's message is about bullying, not homelessness.

If they hadn't made a Gwen doll, people would probably wonder why that hadn't made Chrissa's best friend.

Homelessness is a serious topic. The Gwen doll...not so much. If you don't like her, don't buy her.

 

[Kickapoo Joie Juice]

I don't know how old you are, but kids have been dressing as hobo's for Halloween for many years.

No, no, you're mistaken. That's Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen.

 

[5 'LIL *TWINKERS*]

I don't know how old you are, but kids have been dressing as hobo's for Halloween for many years.

Hmmmm, I must have missed that, I don't recall that with my kids. I am 36 with 5 children. Been to many of Halloween school parties! Kids around here dress up as the latest superheros and tv personalities, princesses and the gory stuff of course and hunters.

Are hobos and homeless the same thing? I get the impression that hobos are what they want to be, not because they have to be. Maybe my bad

 

[wdwfan16]

You would think nothing of some kid dressed up as a homeless child? What would you think if they DID have dirt on their face, tangled hair and a begging cup? So, as long as they don't have those 3 characteristics, its an exeptable doll?
JMHO, I still think the whole thing is in bad taste. Its sad for a little, homeless girl to see a doll that looks like her, that has no home, no sense of security, no bed of her own, no place to go, among many other things. Do you really think that homeless girl/girl who was previously homeless, would want this doll? Maybe she would if she was trying to educate other kids about her situation or homelessness in general.
Other than that.....

My kids would be saddened by this doll if they saw it.

The doll is cute and if my daughter wanted to dress like her I would not have a problem.

You think it is in bad taste but I do not. Big deal.

 

[wdwfan16]

I don't know how old you are, but kids have been dressing as hobo's for Halloween for many years.

And all those gypsie costumes. Hell Universal had a Gypsie women in the Wolfman movie. I think I should boycott US now.

 

[TinkPinkPoem]

They are, and they are hilarious

Please tell me that your post is a joke and you really didn't think they made a pregnant, smoking barbie with a bottle of JD.

No, I did not, but the tone of your post was quite serious so I understood you took them to be real! I was trying to be subtle but I guess I looked like a fool!

Seriously, y'all, they're a joke.

Google "white trash barbie" and you'll get hilarious descriptions to go along with the photos-we have one for each neighborhood here in Atlanta, and it seems like it applies all over the united states-there's a white trash barbie version for oregon, etc.

I wasn't upset, just amazed by the poster's tone!

 

[luvmy3]

No, I did not, but the tone of your post was quite serious so I understood you took them to be real! I was trying to be subtle but I guess I looked like a fool!

You didn't look like a fool, I figured you knew they weren't real.
BTW I wasn't the one who posted them

 

[TinkPinkPoem]

You didn't look like a fool, I figured you knew they weren't real.
BTW I wasn't the one who posted them

Sorry, I was so embarassed I didn't even notice which poster said what.

 

[NotUrsula]

What I'm finding amazing is the incensed tone of all these posts defending the company. Reading all that, someone who didn't know better might almost think that AG was a religion of some kind.

I'm the OP, and I meant for the thread to be mildly amusing. It *is* ironic, that a toy line that is ordinarily such a world-class marketing juggernaut would make such a mis-step. AFAIC, that is all it was, a poorly thought-out product tie-in that is in rather bad taste.

Mattel as a company has showed much worse judgment in their time. Anyone remember the pregnant Barbie with the pop-out fetus?

FTR, I personally don't have anything against the AG line, and when I ran a public library I stocked multiples of all the books. I can laugh when the company does something stupid, though, just as I can when Disney fouls up.

(Full disclosure, I own stock in both Disney AND Mattel -- we always invest in public companies that get a lot of our disposable income. When the market is up it functions as a bit of a discount.)

 

[sbell111]

What I'm finding amazing is the incensed tone of all these posts defending the company. Reading all that, someone who didn't know better might almost think that AG was a religion of some kind.

I'm the OP, and I meant for the thread to be mildly amusing. It *is* ironic, that a toy line that is ordinarily such a world-class marketing juggernaut would make such a mis-step. AFAIC, that is all it was, a poorly thought-out product tie-in that is in rather bad taste.

In bad taste in some people's eyes, perhaps, but the doll has been quite successful.

Mattel as a company has showed much worse judgment in their time. Anyone remember the pregnant Barbie with the pop-out fetus?

Barbie has never been pregnant. A pregnant version of her married friend Midge was sold. WalMart pulled it from it's shelves after some cranks cranked. Those dolls are now selling for over two hundred dollars.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

You would think nothing of some kid dressed up as a homeless child? What would you think if they DID have dirt on their face, tangled hair and a begging cup? So, as long as they don't have those 3 characteristics, its an exeptable doll?
JMHO, I still think the whole thing is in bad taste. Its sad for a little, homeless girl to see a doll that looks like her, that has no home, no sense of security, no bed of her own, no place to go, among many other things. Do you really think that homeless girl/girl who was previously homeless, would want this doll? Maybe she would if she was trying to educate other kids about her situation or homelessness in general.
Other than that.....

My kids would be saddened by this doll if they saw it.

That just shows that you do not encourage the kids to read.

Gwen is NOT homeless at the end of the original Chrissa story.


This is just getting absolutely pathetic and the stretches people will take to call this bad.


NELLIE WAS AN ORPHAN--remember, Samantha's friend. She began as a lowly paid servant with her siblings. When her father died, they were tossed into a truly evil orphanage and she was separated from her sister's.


Why is this so horrific? And Nellie was created well before Mattel bought out--yet noone complained. Why is that.

Are we too afraid of homelessness that we can't have a fictional character be homeless (though she later becomes un-homeless).

We're knocking Matel's judgement here--but do people honestly know full well the full story of each girl in AG's history to not realize that not every doll has a happy beginning?


To me it isn't about defending the company so much as realizing that people don't have all their facts straight which weakens your argument that AG is being socially irresponsible with the characters they create.

 

[5 'LIL *TWINKERS*]

That just shows that you do not encourage the kids to read.

Excuse me.....My 3 older children are top readers in their school and have recieved awards for that. Just because I don't agree with homeless looking dolls, whether they are from a story or not, doesn't mean I don't encourage my kids to read. They read all sorts of stories.

I don't understand how you got that statement from my post???
Don't act like you know me by making specific statements like that about being a mother.

 

[Chernabog#1fan]

Excuse me.....My 3 older children are top readers in their school and have recieved awards for that. Just because I don't agree with homeless looking dolls, whether they are from a story or not, doesn't mean I don't encourage my kids to read. They read all sorts of stories.

I don't understand how you got that statement from my post???
Don't act like you know me by making specific statements like that about being a mother.

I am not trying to be mean by asking this question, so please do not take it that way. I am simply trying to understand your thought process.

What exactly does homelessness look like?

You state that you do not agree with a homeless looking doll, but the doll looks like a regular child (doll) would. There is no way that walking through the store you would be able to tell that for a portion of time in the story, she was homeless. I think that in today's economic situation, there are several people in school that are homeless and you would never know just by looking at them.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Excuse me.....My 3 older children are top readers in their school and have recieved awards for that. Just because I don't agree with homeless looking dolls, whether they are from a story or not, doesn't mean I don't encourage my kids to read. They read all sorts of stories.

I don't understand how you got that statement from my post???
Don't act like you know me by making specific statements like that about being a mother.

You made a presumption on the news article which wasn't really a "news" article.

It seems you have not read the book nor are familiar with the story and are judging a doll based on appearances and a blog entry.

Rather than encouraging your children to read the story--you presume that the homelessness is just in poor taste. And the fact that your children would be saddened to hear about that is shocking since they do not know Gwen's full story. BTW--she isn't advertised as "the homeless doll" anywhere on AG's website.

Gwen looks like a normal child and the high horse that some folks are on over her home status is pretty sad and judgemental.


It doesn't make you a better person or your children better people to snub their noses at a doll who isn't even portrayed in a poor light even within the context of the story.

 

[LaurenLC]

I guess I don’t really understand what is wrong with a company trying to teach children about something that they probably know very little about…. I read the American Girl books when I was younger (the dolls were mail order only then) and I loved them! I would have NO problem letting my children (if I had any) read a book about homelessness. I would also happily buy them the doll if they wanted it. My only hope is that part of the proceeds goes to help children that are affected by homelessness.