The discontinuation of American Girl’s Asian and African American dolls has sparked a backlash against the company and accusations that the decision was racially motivated, reports Vocativ.
Some 1,100 comments were posted on Facebook where the company made the announcement that Marie-Grace, Cécile, Ruthi and Ivy were being discontinued, leaving American Girl with no Asian American or African American doll.
“While we are archiving these characters as part of this shift in strategy, we remain incredibly proud of the wide range of backgrounds, cultures and races offered in all of our doll lines,” says Stephanie Spanos, American Girl senior PR rep. “We’re honored that people look to us as a leader in creating high-quality, diverse characters.”
The company says collectors will still have the ability to create dolls in their likeness and that it will continue to add new dolls to its “Girl of the Year” series every year.
You can read more about the reaction to America Girl’s decision and its response to it in Vocativ.