Toy giant Mattel has just launched a new line of dolls without pre-assigned genders. Each doll comes with long and short hairstyle options and a variety of wardrobe pieces including pants, skirts, and more, so kids can make them fit whatever gender identity and expression they wish.
The Creatable World dolls are billed as “a customizable doll line inviting all kids to play.” To help them shape the toys, Mattel brought in experts, parents, physicians, and kids. “Toys are a reflection of culture and as the world continues to celebrate the positive impact of inclusivity, we felt it was time to create a doll line free of labels,” said Kim Culmone, Senior Vice President of Mattel Fashion Doll Design. “Through research, we heard that kids don’t want their toys dictated by gender norms. This line allows all kids to express themselves freely which is why it resonates so strongly with them. We’re hopeful Creatable World will encourage people to think more broadly about how all kids can benefit from doll play.”
TIME magazine notes, “Mattel tested the doll with 250 families across seven states, including 15 children who identify as trans, gender-nonbinary or gender-fluid and rarely see themselves reflected in the media, let alone their playthings. ‘There were a couple of gender-creative kids who told us that they dreaded Christmas Day because they knew whatever they got under the Christmas tree, it wasn’t made for them,’ says Monica Dreger, head of consumer insights at Mattel.” That’s heartbreaking—and the best reason I know that these dolls should exist.
It’s not just kids who are gender creative themselves who may enjoy the dolls, though. TIME adds, “In testing, the company found that Generation Alpha children chafed at labels and mandates no matter their gender identity: They didn’t want to be told whom a toy was designed for or how to play with it. They were delighted with a doll that had no name and could transform and adapt according to their whims.”
Bravo, Mattel!
I do have a bone to pick with some of the other media coverage of these dolls, however. TIME, Newsweek, USA Today, and Fast Company all call them “gender-neutral dolls,” rather than using Mattel’s appellation of “gender inclusive.” As this handy guide to all-gender bathrooms from the University of Arizona notes, “‘Gender neutral’ can imply an absence of expressed gender. The language of ‘all-gender’ is preferred because it is explicitly inclusive of everyone.” Same for the dolls. As kids play with them, some of the dolls may not have an expressed gender; others may; sometimes it will be fixed, and other times fluid. Mattel’s “gender inclusive” language feels more, well, inclusive, than “gender neutral,” and I encourage my fellow journalists and bloggers to follow their lead here.
The product has a suggested retail price of $30 and is available at major retailers online including Amazon, Target, and Walmart. It is unclear whether the doll will eventually be in brick-and-mortar locations.
Now watch Mattel’s video for the doll line—and note not just the dolls, but the variety of gender expressions among the kid models. This is going a long way towards restoring my faith in humanity today.
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