From the NY Daily News:
Barbie from the block got mixed reviews Wednesday from city girls inspecting the newest spin on the old-school toy.
“So In Style” dolls, a fresh take on the black Barbie, hit store shelves this week, featuring a group of plastic friends sporting shiny bling, big earrings and fancy sneakers.
RELATED: Mattel Introduces Black Barbies With More “Authentic Features”
Many of the city girls liked the dolls – Grace, Kara and Trichelle – but some felt the Mattel toy company went too far with the rap-inspired details.
“Not all black people like hip hop,” said Barbara Mootoo, 15, of Manhattan, looking at Kara’s silver rope chain necklace. “They gave her a chain like a 50Cent video.”
Tyaine Danclaire, 15, of the Bronx, liked Trichelle’s straight, long hair because it looked like “a weave,” but she thought the idea “was sorta racist.”
RELATED: Bratz Lose Long Legal Dispute Against Barbie
“They say black girls are ghetto with the gold earrings, with the big bling; I don’t agree with that,” she said.
Mattel said veteran Barbie designer Stacey McBride-Irby, an African-American mother of two, created the dolls so her kids could have toys that look like their neighborhood friends.
