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Post by Admin on Oct 18, 2016 14:35:08 GMT -8
Viola Davis is taking a well-thought-out approach when it comes to the type of toys she allows her 6-year-old daughter, Genesis, to play with. And, unlike some parents, Davis says she’s not a fan of her daughter playing with dolls. In an interview with Essence, Davis spoke about only buying toys that help educate her daughter and build her self-esteem. “I don’t give her Barbie dolls, to be honest. The only sort of ‘dolls’ that she could [have] are superhero dolls; she just got [one] in the mail. Mostly she plays with small animals. I don’t want her to begin to create images throughout her life featuring women that do not look like her at all that she puts too much value in. I’m trying to do as much as I can to train her up to love who she is as much as I can,” Davis said. Davis also went on to speak about the mantra that she and her husband have her daughter recite. “She says the two most important parts of her are her heart and her head,” Davis explained. “I want Genesis to know that her values are within.” When it comes to a lot of dolls not being representative of young black girls, Davis may be on to something. Davis also says she realizes she’s a role model not only to her daughter but also to black girls all over the world, and that she wants to change the black woman narrative about “never letting them see you sweat.” “Everything is about not letting anyone see you sweat, not owning up to your vulnerability or your weaknesses or your failures. I don’t think that you can live a life for two minutes and say that you’ve never failed or you’re not struggling through something or you’re not getting ready to. If you’re saying that, then you’re 100 percent lying and the people who are looking up to you who are struggling; you’re not helping them,” Davis said. www.theroot.com/blog/the-grapevine/viola-davis-says-shell-never-buy-her-daughter-barbie-dolls/ |
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blackonblack
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Post by blackonblack on Oct 20, 2016 1:42:19 GMT -8
There are black barbies though. Some are expensive, but she can afford them. Mattel also has a line of black barbies with natural hair created by a black woman.
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Post by MelaninMonroe on Oct 20, 2016 17:52:57 GMT -8
I understand what she means and to a certain extent I agree but there are black barbies out there that she can buy. But maybe it's not about the color, necessarily. Even black barbies come in only "skinny" sizes. I guess the general outlook of barbies altogether can be very off putting for a young and growing (black) girl.
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Post by Admin on Oct 20, 2016 18:02:52 GMT -8
blackonblack MelaninMonroe forgot to add the pics, but she buys her daughter Black superhero dolls. There were two pictures of her baby holding the Ava Duvernay doll and another of a superhero Black girl with pigtails!
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blackonblack
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Post by blackonblack on Oct 21, 2016 3:23:58 GMT -8
I understand what she means and to a certain extent I agree but there are black barbies out there that she can buy. But maybe it's not about the color, necessarily. Even black barbies come in only "skinny" sizes. I guess the general outlook of barbies altogether can be very off putting for a young and growing (black) girl. I'm why my mind instantly went to race, and didn't also factor in body image. That's definitely valid. |
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MelaninMonroe
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Post by MelaninMonroe on Oct 21, 2016 12:35:22 GMT -8
blackonblack MelaninMonroe forgot to add the pics, but she buys her daughter Black superhero dolls. There were two pictures of her baby holding the Ava Duvernay doll and another of a superhero Black girl with pigtails! Now that's what I'm talking bout! That's really cool. I'm going to look for those to buy my nieces and cousins. It's good to expose her to those kind of dolls because let's be honest, a lot of a young girl's growing self esteem is attributed to the figures she sees in media and the toys sold at stores. |
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Post by MelaninMonroe on Oct 21, 2016 12:36:31 GMT -8
I understand what she means and to a certain extent I agree but there are black barbies out there that she can buy. But maybe it's not about the color, necessarily. Even black barbies come in only "skinny" sizes. I guess the general outlook of barbies altogether can be very off putting for a young and growing (black) girl. I'm why my mind instantly went to race, and didn't also factor in body image. That's definitely valid. Honestly, when I was young playing with dolls didn't have too much of an affect on my self esteem, etc but maybe that was because I really couldn't stand them (I was more of a teddy bear girl) but I can still understand why people are very careful about the kind of toys they let their children play with. |
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Post by Admin on Oct 22, 2016 9:45:39 GMT -8
It honestly breaks my heart to see little Black girls with majority White dolls. It also makes me a little irritated by the parents. I know what having non-Black dolls leads to.
My grandma made sure to buy me Black dolls and didn't let other buy me other colors/races of dolls until I got older. I thank her for it everyday.
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blackonblack
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Post by blackonblack on Oct 24, 2016 13:27:25 GMT -8
It's not enough to just play with black folks. The dolls need or should have hair that is similar to black hair, facial features similar to ours, etc.
I never felt insecure from playing barbies, but I was skinny (and I've heard many adult women say they felt bad about their self image because they weren't thin, but their Barbie was), so there's that. I used to wear towels on my head and pretend it was my hair, but I'm not sure that was a result of Barbie. Could have been because I lived in an area that was majority white. I didn't hate my hair, my hair was always done. I don't remember feeling negatively about my hair, but still it speaks to something that I and other young black girls can relate to. I know a few black women who did the same thing as a child, but again there is no memory of feeling inferior or ugly.
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Post by Admin on Nov 2, 2016 13:29:01 GMT -8
It's not enough to just play with black folks. The dolls need or should have hair that is similar to black hair, facial features similar to ours, etc. I never felt insecure from playing barbies, but I was skinny (and I've heard many adult women say they felt bad about their self image because they weren't thin, but their Barbie was), so there's that. I used to wear towels on my head and pretend it was my hair, but I'm not sure that was a result of Barbie. Could have been because I lived in an area that was majority white. I didn't hate my hair, my hair was always done. I don't remember feeling negatively about my hair, but still it speaks to something that I and other young black girls can relate to. I know a few black women who did the same thing as a child, but again there is no memory of feeling inferior or ugly. I think this applies to me. My grandmother raised me to be knowledgeable and proud of my community, but even though she did the best she could, I don't think she went deep enough. I raised mostly around White kids (at school), but I did have black girls as friends until around middle school. Started getting "whitewashed" around then. (Is whitewashing a thing? A black kid said that to me in 7th grade.) Anyway, I am really trying my best to be aware of the self-hate I developed around middle school, as well as attacking it. It's hard work, but I know I wouldn't want to be anything other than Black for the world. And you're right -- both ways of thinking do not start with playing with Barbies. Barbies can help or make it worse, but it's about upbringing, environment, etc. I'm glad Viola is teaching her baby this way. Seriously wish I had this because then middle school would have never happened the way it did! |
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