Barbie’s new Inspiring Women series doll honors Wilma Mankiller
Mattel is once again adding to their collection of Inspiring Women dolls.
The latest doll celebrates Wilma Mankiller, an advocate for social justice and the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. A social worker, Mankiller worked to empower indigenous communities, which earned her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998.
Just a few of her accomplishments include a achieving a decline in infant mortality and a rise in educational achievement in the Cherokee Nation.
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To make the doll, Barbie worked with Mankiller’s family and friends, including her former husband and a friend, as well as her estate and the Cherokee Nation. (Mankiller died in 2010.)
The doll is carrying a basket and is dressed in a teal dress with striping to represent the four compass directions: north, south, east and west.
The Wilma Mankiller doll is available for preorder now for $35 from Mattel’s website. You’ll also be able to buy it on Amazon and at Target when it’s released later this month.
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The Inspiring Women Series is a tribute to historical and present-day female role models. Previous dolls have included the likes of Eleanor Roosevelt, Maya Angelou, Ida B. Wells, Helen Keller, Jane Goodall and Bessie Coleman, the first Black and Native American female aviator.
The most recent Inspiring Women doll before Mankiller was Anna May Wong, who is considered to be the first Chinese American Hollywood movie star and was the first Asian-American to lead a U.S. television show.
Barbie has also been releasing a handful of collector-edition dolls recently, including another powerful female: Stevie Nicks.
The new Stevie Nicks doll is a celebration of the entertainer’s 75th birthday. The doll’s outfit is inspired by the 1977 Fleetwood Mac “Rumors” album cover and includes a layered skirt that “drapes and swirls like smoke.”
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Which female role model would you like to see transformed into a Barbie?
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