For every woman who grew up with Barbie, July 21st was an emotional and joyful day for us all. Many of us now mothers ourselves have witnessed firsthand the evolution of Barbie. Some of us (Ahem, me) embarrassingly played with Barbie until the old age of 14 and could not wait to play again with our children. I might be the one asking for the new Barbie Dreamhouse for Christmas this year.
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When the movie release day came, the anticipation hit the entire country by storm. I knew I wanted the day itself to be special. It was a day I could share with my own daughter. We started by a mall trip to pick very specific “Barbie” pink outfits and I let her pick a new Barbie toy. Then we were off to Phoenix Luxury Theaters in Bridgeville in our cute little outfits.
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I was surprised by the movie. Not only did it have a doll-effect and cartoon-feel to keep my 4-year-old daughter entertained, but it actually was deep. It touched on the evolution of Barbie and how much women have transformed over the years. It also touched on diversity, inclusivity, gender equality, feminism, and aspiration but it did so in a cute, quirky way that captured our hearts.
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Taking my daughter to see Barbie was one of the highlights of our summer and I know every little girl (or boy) who sees it can truly take away a valuable lesson. Here were our favorites:
- Women come in every color, shape, and size! Hallelujah!
It’s about time. When I was growing up, the only Barbies I saw in stores were white and perfectly proportioned. This was a huge self-esteem issue for women. I purposefully started buying my white daughter black Barbies, too, for this reason. I’m so appreciative that the brand came to times and advocates for the beauty of diversity.
- You really can be anything!
A lawyer. An astronaut. A doctor. An author. Starting little girls with the right mindset is so important. You really can be anything you want in this world if you have the courage to pursue it. OK, that might have been a Walt Disney quote. But still! I love the goal-getting attitude that Barbie brings.
- A relationship doesn’t define you.
Find your YOU before you find your WE. This is something I will preach to my own daughter. I loved the ending scene when Barbie asks Ken to figure out who Ken is without Barbie. I think this is such an important takeaway. You are not your relationship status.
- You can wear and live and breathe PINK, and still be a professional.
If you follow along Attorney Martinez, AKA the real-life Elle Woods, you know what I mean. She is the perfect example of a modern-day professional woman, who isn’t afraid to take down the courtroom in a pink suit. I was that legal professional in my twenties who absolutely loathed the 9-5 life simply because I was that splash of color in a black and white world. Let’s just say wearing bright colors and desiring to write in pink pen wasn’t heavily applauded in the legal world. If her firm existed when I was starting out, maybe I would have stayed in law. Barbie, just the same, shows women that you can have a colorful taste in style, and still rock the boardroom.
- Being pro-female does not mean being anti-men.
Ken serves his role. I think the movie not only spoke for modern day feminism but explained it in a way that was not anti-men. In the Barbie world, the world was flipped. It was the Barbies’ who were the career-women and the dolls originally seemed to have no purpose for the Kens. The Kens seem a little lost throughout the first half of the movie.
Though Barbie stands for female empowerment, I thought the ending was truly powerful in addressing gender equality. Ken learns that though he doesn’t have to work, he doesn’t have to follow Barbie along like a lost puppy either. It’s important to address to our future females that though women may no longer rely on men for financial benefit (or our dreamhouse), feminism does not mean anti-men.
I know this movie brought so much positive change to the Barbie world. For every little girl growing up, you’re being exposed to an even better world. I hope everyone takes a bit of Barbie-isms into their own life and never forgets how important childhood is: to play, imagine, and create an unimaginable future!
