No Joke: Latest American Girl Doll is Homeless : Parenting : Life : Blogs.com

No Joke: Latest American Girl Doll is Homeless

The new American Girl doll has just about everybody baffled. Gwen costs $95, like the other American Girl dolls, but there's a difference: She's homeless. Selling this doll is "at best a head-scratcher and at worst a horribly offensive cultural trainwreck," says Nina Shen Rastogi on Double X. CBS told some women at a homeless shelter about the doll--they liked the idea "until they learned Gwen isn't a fundraising device for the homeless." "Is it appropriate to try and sell a $95 doll that few, if any, homeless girls could afford?" wonders Dad-O-Matic. "Or does it help teach children valuable life lessons, teaching them compassion about those who might be less fortunate?" At End Homelessness, Shannon Moriarty says her "initial reaction was disgust" but concludes, "The only thing obscene about this American Girl controversy is that it takes a plastic doll and her fictional biography to have everyone up in arms. Yet, the real stories of homeless children crowding shelters and schools are accepted without an ounce of outrage." "Maybe learning about Gwen's story will encourage a future leader in the fight against poverty. And Gwen's background can teach more fortunate kids to be grateful for the things they have," says Cocoa Fly. "On the other hand, Gwen can't even afford Gwen."

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The new American Girl doll has just about everybody baffled. Gwen costs $95, like the other American Girl dolls, but there's a difference: She's homeless. Selling this doll is "at best a head-scratcher and at worst a horribly offensive cultural trainwreck," says Nina Shen Rastogi on Double X. CBS told some women at a homeless shelter about the doll--they liked the idea "until they learned Gwen isn't a fundraising device for the homeless." "Is it appropriate to try and sell a $95 doll that few, if any, homeless girls could afford?" wonders Dad-O-Matic. "Or does it help teach children valuable life lessons, teaching them compassion about those who might be less fortunate?" At End Homelessness, Shannon Moriarty says her "initial reaction was disgust" but concludes, "The only thing obscene about this American Girl controversy is that it takes a plastic doll and her fictional biography to have everyone up in arms. Yet, the real stories of homeless children crowding shelters and schools are accepted without an ounce of outrage." "Maybe learning about Gwen's story will encourage a future leader in the fight against poverty. And Gwen's background can teach more fortunate kids to be grateful for the things they have," says Cocoa Fly. "On the other hand, Gwen can't even afford Gwen."