American Girl: A Follow Up To Our Open Letter

Image obtained via American Girl

Earlier this year I wrote an open letter to American Girl with the hopes that they would see how much making a doll with Down syndrome features and characteristics would mean to so many. The only response I received from the company was a generic reply letting me know that they celebrate all kids and are constantly working to show diversity, but they had no immediate plans to create a doll with Down syndrome because they didn’t want to offend the community.

I can honestly say it’s been a long, uphill battle with toy companies, such as American Girl, in trying to open their eyes to the huge difference they’re capable of making. Individuals with Down syndrome are [finally] being included in advertising (praise to Target, Carter’s, Gerber, Justice, and yes, even American Girl who just recently featured a 4 year old girl in their October holiday catalog) but they aren’t quite making it to the toy aisle. Barbie, American Girl, Bitty Babies.. all of these dolls have one thing in common; They don’t offer a doll that has Down syndrome.

To say it’s frustrating would be an understatement so when I was contacted by Renee Fabian, features editor with The Mighty, to do an interview about how I felt about American Girl’s latest catalog I was ecstatic.

You can view the full article here and see what I had to say about American Girl’s choice to include a model with Down syndrome while failing to include a doll with Down syndrome.

If you want to show your support, you can sign the Change.org petition started by Beth Scott here.

It’s our hope that one day soon companies like American Girl and Mattel will see the value in including the special needs community by creating a doll with Down syndrome.