Kirsten, Kaya, Bitty Baby… names so familiar to so many little girls. As well they ought to be, for the American Girl dolls are one the most popular types of dolls for girls. Growing up, the majority of girls either had one, or wanted one. I still have Kirsten and Kaya… I still have the dresses I got for Kirsten. After all, it’s just not enough to get the doll, you have to collect her collection! And the American Girl dolls are actually a much better thing to collect than Barbies, for instance. At least with American Girl you get a real girl doll, with stories that provide not just nice reading for young girls, but lessons in historical time periods. And the outfits for the dolls were pretty dresses from each girl’s time period. Who could resist Felicity’s blue ball gown to wear to the Governor’s palace or Samantha’s sailor dress? American Girl seemed to be the perfect spot for families who wanted to encourage feminine values without the modernism of things like Barbie.
But apparently all is not as it seemed. Now there are demonstrations for the pro-life movement taking place in Chicago outside of The American Girl Place. The American Girl Place had been a place for girls to go to shop for new clothes for Addy or Molly or their American Girl of Today. It was family friendly, with a café and fashion shows and everything a little girl could dream of. But what has happened to change it so drastically? Why is it that now there are loud protestors outside such a beautiful and friendly place? What has happened to deter so many people from buying from American Girl? And why is there a boycott in the first place?
A perusal of the American Girl website1 will show that they support a group known as Girls Inc.2 American Girl has stated that they will send $50,000 to Girls Inc. and they will also donate them $0.70 for every “I Can” bracelet they sell.3 At first glance, Girls Inc. seems like a perfectly lovely organization, and donating to them is a nice thing that such a company like American Girl would do. Girls Inc. intends to help girls all over the country to not be constrained by peer pressure, etc. Yet upon closer look, it also does much more than that.
Because Girls Inc. is dedicated to the choices and freedom of girls and women, they are dedicated to many things that many conservative Christians would oppose, such as curbing homophobia. 4 Now, while homophobia is not necessarily right, since we as Christians are called to love everyone, there is more than that. One of the first things that pops to mind when considering freedom of choice for women and girls is abortion. Rather than believe in the sanctity of life, Girls Inc. believes that “[r]estrictions of reproductive choice are especially burdensome for young women and poor women. Girls Incorporated supports a woman’s freedom of choice, a constitutional right established by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1973 in Roe vs. Wade.”5 As if this outright support of abortion and the decision from Roe v. Wade, was not enough, they also believe that there can be differences in sexual orientation. They not only encourage “…all girls to develop positive sexual identities and to function comfortably as responsible sexual beings”, but they even specifically touch on sexual orientation. “We recognize that any sizable group of girls includes those who face issues related to their sexual orientation or that of a family member and who face discrimination based on this sexual orientation. Girls have a right to positive, supportive environments and linkages to community resources for dealing with issues of sexual orientation.”
But is American Girl’s support of Girl’s Inc. enough to warrant a boycott? I believe that as Christians if we are not to practice such things, such as abortion and homosexuality, we are also not to support them. If something supports them, even if it’s only by supporting something else that openly supports them, we cannot in good conscience continue to support the first company in question. Girl’s Inc. supports homosexuality and abortion and it does so openly. American Girl supports Girl’s Inc. and does so openly. Is the boycott right? Maybe a better question would be, is buying from them going to support homosexuality and abortion? I cannot in clear conscience support American Girl any longer… the question though is, can you?
1 http://www.americangirl.com
2 http://www.girlsinc.org
3 http://store.americangirl.com/shop/ican.php
4 http://www.girlsinc.org/ic/page.php?id=4.3.1
5 http://www.girlsinc.org/ic/page.php?id=4.3.4
Is a noisy protest the best use of time for a christian? The issue of homophobia was glossed over with no point being made beyond mentioning the call to christians to love. I think that Christ’s message of love and his commands concerning treatment of our brothers and sisters are actually much more powerful than many christians are willing to live up to. I certainly never read in the Bible that christians will win souls through anger and meanness.
As to the question of buying from American Girl? I cannot do so in good conscience…to do show would be to an indirect support of Girls Inc. Many companies support such organizations, and in some cases it is impossible to avoid (technology, banking, etc). But there are alternatives to American Girl, A Life of Faith, for instance. My sisters (I’m a guy) love their American Girl dolls, but if Mom can get them compatible clothes and dolls from other sources, it seems the best choice. It is at least a try to stand on principle.
Samuel: in regards to your comment about noisy protest…I don’t think this is a loud, belligerent boycott. It’s more a matter of principle…we are not going to be able to get American Girl to change their position by creating nasty websites and angry speech. My mother sent them a letter, detailing why she was disappointed in American Girl, and would no longer be buying from them. If enough Moms did that, I suspect it would be more powerful then 1000 protesters in front of their headquarters. So I agree with your last statement…we are more likely to win by being lambs, not lions.
Just like the Christmas boycotts…a lot of major corporations changed their minds rather quickly after sales started dropping. :D
Since I was 7 years old my family has supported American Girl. In our family when a girl turns 2 she receives a Bitty Baby, and when she turns 7 she receives an American Girl doll. (during/after she has read some of the books). My mom was extremely disappointed by AG’s support of Girls Inc, as was I. How ever, it seems that we have won by being both the Lamb and the Lion. On Black Friday, there WERE protesters outside of American Girl Place. Among them were many young girls, with signs bearing the words “Girls for Life”. In their arms, they held their American Girl dolls, who also bore tiny signs with the same words. Many people stopped buying American Girl products as well, and not with out result. As of December 26th, American Girl will have completely dropped any affiliation with Girls Inc. To replace the pro-abortion company, they have made a new website that goes right along with their American Girl stuff. http://www.savegirlhood.com/
Save Girlhood is there because of the too common influence of such toys as Bratz and even some Barbies to make little girls all of 8 or 9 years old into mini-teenagers. Instead, it speaks of unicorns and doll play and tea parties for little girls. Check it out. Your article, by the way Alessandra, was well written and certainly correct when you composed it. How ever, you may wish to update it. ;)
Thank you Sarah. :) Actually, my mother just informed me this, about five minutes ago. I was coming on to make a comment, but you said just what I was going to say. :)
And people say that boycotting doesn’t work?