{"id":39010,"date":"2019-02-21T14:57:47","date_gmt":"2019-02-21T14:57:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jomec.co.uk\/intercardiff\/?p=39010"},"modified":"2019-02-21T14:57:47","modified_gmt":"2019-02-21T14:57:47","slug":"new-barbie-wheelchair-face-children-disabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/politics-social-justice\/new-barbie-wheelchair-face-children-disabilities","title":{"rendered":"The new Barbie in a wheelchair: a face for children with disabilities"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Children with disabilities have their own representative toys thanks to a new effort in the industry.<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_39283\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-39283\" style=\"width: 625px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39283\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/pd2-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-39283\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39283\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/pd2-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><\/noscript> Diverse Barbie dolls will be launched by Mattel in 2019.<br \/>Taken from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/barbie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barbie&#8217;s instagram page<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>As a 13-year-old disability activist, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/jordanjustright\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Jordan Reeves<\/a> has spent her whole life wearing a prosthetic arm and dreaming that Barbie dolls could be like her. Existing dolls all had the same body shape, hair colour and skin. Now, her dream is closer.<\/p>\n<p>In June, Barbie will launch a prosthetic and a wheelchair doll, which are inspired by Jordan&#8217;s story and part of Mattel&#8217;s 2019 Barbie Fashionista collection.<\/p>\n<p>It might be just a small step in the development of diversity in the toy industry, but for those children with disabilities, it is long-awaited progress. Brie Wallance, who has been in a wheelchair for more than three decades, is excited to hear this news.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am in a wheelchair and I\u2019ve always wanted to see something like this when I was a kid I\u2019m almost 35 years old now. It\u2019s about time for this change in Barbie dolls everywhere,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_39286\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-39286\" style=\"width: 625px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39286\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/Public_Radio_International-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-39286\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39286\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/Public_Radio_International-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><\/noscript> Becky was launched in 1997, who was known as Barbie\u2019s friend and discontinued from the production line. Taken from <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gettyimages.co.uk\/detail\/news-photo\/becky-barbie-doll-is-seen-on-display-at-the-exhibition-news-photo\/635421010\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Eduardo Parra\/Getty Images<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In fact, this is not the first time that Barbie dolls have been in a wheelchair. Back in 1997, the toymaker had a production line for Barbie\u2019s friend, named Becky, who used a wheelchair. But this line was discontinued because people had little interest in this, which caused damage to profits.<\/p>\n<p>Now, toy companies still pay attention to profits, but cultural diversity seems to serve as a brand marketing strategy. The price of the disabled Barbie doll on Amazon is \u00a359, while the other Barbie products range from \u00a310 to \u00a329, making the disabled version hard for children to afford with their pocket money. And \u00a0the average household income of a child with a disability is 23.5% lower than the UK average.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the high price, this is a belated awakening for parents. \u201cWhen families and the society take steps to understand the personal needs of disabled children, provide support and respect, the good mental health will be built under these circumstances, and their learning potential can be maximized,\u201d said Cynthia, a mother. She is looking forward to seeing the doll available in the UK and purchasing it for her daughter.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_39285\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-39285\" style=\"width: 625px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39285\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/pd4-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-39285\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-39285\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/pd4-625x352.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"352\" \/><\/noscript> Barbie in wheelchair on Amazon costs more than regular Barbie.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The toymaker is trying to take steps to make disabled children feel that they are an important part of the world. Among 800,000 of children with disabilities under the age of 16 in the UK, over 30% are social or behavioural.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome children with disabilities may have difficulty forming and maintaining relationships because of disabilities that limit or restrict their participation in daily activities with peers. Children with disabilities are more likely to experience conditions that adversely affect their mental health,\u201d said Mary Law, who is a Co-Director at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.canchild.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">CanChild Centre<\/a> for childhood disability research.<\/p>\n<p>What they fear most is that their peers will not accept their identities. Now, when little girls with wheelchairs and prosthetics finally have a Barbie that looks like them, the lasting stereotypes in society might change.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSupport and attitudes from others are key factors affecting the mental health and well-being of disabled children. When people around them take effective steps to involve disabled children and ensure their needs are met, they can help foster positive mental health and well-being,\u201d said Ms Law.<\/p>\n<p>Although there is still a long way to go to help children with disabilities, people are increasingly paying attention to these children\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-39357\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/ig-625x532.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"532\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-39357\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/12\/2019\/02\/ig-625x532.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"625\" height=\"532\" \/><\/noscript><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A new Barbie will represent children with disabilities. But how much can it really improve kids&#8217; wellbeing?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":469,"featured_media":39286,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[277,330],"coauthors":[710],"class_list":["post-39010","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics-social-justice","tag-human-rights","tag-mental-health"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The new Barbie in a wheelchair: a face for children with disabilities - InterCardiff<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/intercardiff\/politics-social-justice\/new-barbie-wheelchair-face-children-disabilities\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The new Barbie in a wheelchair: a face for children with disabilities - InterCardiff\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A new Barbie will represent children with disabilities. 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