A group of women who have children dealing with baldness (or are dealing with it themselves) created a Facebook page. They are encouraging Mattel to create a bald Barbie doll for young girls going through chemotherapy or suffering hair loss for other reasons.
The introduction on the Beautiful and Bald Barbie Facebook page reads: “We would like to see a Beautiful and Bald Barbie made to help young girls who suffer from hair loss due to cancer treatments, Alopecia or Trichotillomania.”
At the time of this publication, the page has over 40,000 Facebook “Likes,” but at this point Mattel, Inc. hasn’t responded to the group’s pleas other than a form letter response.
“We got a generic letter that said they don’t accept outside ideas and they’re developing new ideas for 2012 but couldn’t disclose that information right now,” says Beckie Sypin, one of the mothers responsible for the Facebook campaign.
Sypin’s daughter has been going through chemotherapy for two years as she battles leukemia. She’s just one of the many children around the world who could benefit from and relate to a beautiful and bald Barbie. The doll doesn’t necessarily have to be a Barbie — another company could step up to create the doll. However, because most little girls know Barbie, it would certainly be a good choice.
Check out the Facebook page to read more stories of other children dealing with baldness and to learn more about the efforts to get the Barbie made.
More about hair loss
Haircuts for a cause – Locks of Love
Women’s hair loss & thinning hair
Trichotillomania: Hair twirling gone dangerous
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