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Misee Harris (left) calls out OUR GENERATION Dolls and TARGET for racism and discrimination
Media personality, Misee Harris, is calling out OUR GENERATION Doll Maker on the representation of their sole African American doll, Abrianna, and TARGET for selling the brand in its stores.
“A doll company that prides itself on representing who we are as a community and a generation has gotten it wrong’” insists Misee Harris.
OUR GENERATION Dolls offers four categories: The “Regular Doll” is simply a doll with no added accessories; the “Deluxe Doll” which comes with clothing, grooming and activity-related accessories; the “Retro Doll;” and the “Hair Play Doll” with its long, straight locks. At TARGET, which has a whole aisle dedicated to the company, The Deluxe Doll retails for $31.99 and includes a full suite of accessories. The Regular Doll retails for $29.99, and her accessories must be purchased separately. “Abrianna,” the company’s only African American doll, is sold in select TARGET stores and comes with no accessories.
“For $2.00, there is a huge difference with what you receive,” points out Harris.
There is no option in the OUR GENERATION Doll Collection for a Deluxe African American doll that includes accessories and retails for $31.99.
“After searching several TARGET stores for an African American Deluxe OUR GENERATION Doll to showcase and giveaway on my YouTube Channel,” states Harris, “I finally found “Abrianna” at a TARGET in a neighborhood with a large African American population. In order to buy all of the extras for Abrianna, which come included with each Caucasian Deluxe Doll, I had to spend an additional $60.00.”
Misee Harris has created a YouTube channel at YouTube.com/MiseeHarris, where she gives away her favorite beauty, style and collectible items to her subscribers, which her and her team curate. On her most current video, Misee used her platform to bring awareness to this issue regarding the OUR GENERATION Dolls, stating, “We are a generation of all ethnicities. As an African American woman who is a doctor, business owner, professor and outspoken advocate for the positive and accurate depiction of African American women, I can assure OUR GENERATION Dolls and TARGET that this is not a good representation of minorities.”
If OUR GENERATION is really just that, our generation, shouldn’t it reflect that? “We are a country made up of little girls and women who are Caucasian, Asian, African American, Indian, Latino and Multiracial backgrounds. That is our generation,” states Misee.
“I challenge OUR GENERATION Dolls to re-think their product and how they are represented on retail shelves, and I challenge TARGET to exhibit greater social responsibility and sensitivity with the products it carries in its stores,” concludes Misee Harris.
About Misee Harris
A pediatric dentist and professor of dentistry at Meharry School of Pediatric Dentistry by trade, Misee made waves in the media throughout the past year with her public campaign to become television’s first black Bachelorette. Appearing on HLN’s Showbiz Tonight, The Hallmark Channel’s Home & Family, MSNBC’s TheGrio.com and HuffPost Liveamong other outlets, Misee has stated her case for the equality and positive depiction of African American women in the media. Misee’s platform has been dissected and written about in The New York Times and on countless blogs, including SheKnows.com. Misee is also a regular contributor to The Huffington Post.
