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Writer and historian A’Lelia Bundles reflects on the historic launch of the Madam Walker doll: “Then and now. When I was three years old, my mother made sure I had a Black doll for Christmas. She knew the power of images and role models. She also happened to have known Dr. Mamie Phipps Clark, the social psychologist whose Black doll/white doll study was instrumental in the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education decision in 1954.
By the time I was 8 years old, I’d lost interest in dolls. But as an adult when I began to discover so many talented Black doll makers, I became a collector and now have dozens of them in my house.
Having Madam Walker as part of Barbie’s Inspiring Women Series is an incredibly lovely gift not just for me but I hope for little girls who might see themselves.”
From the Essence article about Bundles and the doll: Mattel Has Released A New Barbie Honoring The Legacy Of Madam CJ Walker And It's Everything
ESSENCE CHATS WITH WALKER'S GREAT-GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER A'LEILA BUNDLES WHO SAYS, “THIS DOLL ISN’T JUST FOR LITTLE GIRLS, IT’S FOR BIG GIRLS TOO.”
By Erica R. Williams · Updated August 24, 2022
Madam C.J. Walker, the first documented self-made woman millionaire, will soon have a doll in her honor as part of the Barbie Signature Inspiring Women collection. She is the latest historical figure to be recognized by Mattel, the toy company that manufactures Barbie.”
See: https://www.essence.com/lifestyle/madam-cj-walker-doll/?amp=1
