A neurodivergent girl living in a Barbie world

Autistic Barbie

 A neurodivergent girl living in a Barbie world

I held my breath as we drove in the parking lot. There was no turning around now, no coming back another day. This had been on our calendar. We planned, excitedly counted down, and wore the appropriate pink attire. Gia knows all the facts: the year she was founded, the creative mastermind behind her inception, and her many variations and careers.

We did our best to plan, and we thought the last showing on a Sunday evening would be our best bet. This wasn’t our first rodeo, we’ve successfully planned movies in the past. As it turned out, we were among nearly one hundred people who packed the movie theater that evening. The first 60 minutes of the 119 minute movie went smoothly. And then it was time for a sensory break - Gia needed to move her body to process the stimuli she had been experiencing upon our arrival. Only this wasn’t an inclusive, sensory friendly showing. In fact, despite all of my best efforts, our community doesn’t offer this service of accessibility, where kids can be kids and neurodiversity is embraced.

If you were at the same showing of the Barbie movie that night, I'm not going to apologize but I will explain.

What you witnessed was Gia having a meltdown. I use this analogy in explaining a meltdown to others: Think of the worst panic attack you have ever had. That is how Gia felt and what she experienced that evening. Gia’s stress response is to “freeze” and that’s precisely what happened inside the theater that evening. As she was sprawled out in hysterics just outside the theater doors, then again in the concession, and lastly in the main entrance.

Gia cried nearly the entire way home that evening, as did I. I was heartbroken for my daughter. All she needed to do was bounce around a little, hand flap, and process her experience kinesthetically and vocally. As we pulled away from the parking lot that evening, leaving behind a movie theater packed with people still watching the second half of the movie, one thing became crystal clear in my rear view mirror: Gia is an autistic girl living in a Barbie World.

At home when Gia plays with her barbies, she sets an elaborate scene. In Gia’s Barbie Land, every barbie plays a part and has a story to tell. This is her internal state language, as many children process their social understanding, learn about other’s thoughts and feelings through this sort of doll and imaginative play.

Which brings me to my next point.

If Barbie can be anything, then I want her to be autistic. Barbie is a fashion doll and has served as a cultural icon for American children since 1959. I can think of no better role model for our children than Barbie on the Spectrum, who shows up every day, courageously, overcoming barriers and sees life through a neurodivergent lens. And since autism can occur in any race, ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic group and often co-occurs with other disabilities and differences; she would be the epitome of inclusion, diversity and beauty.

So, if autism is an invisible disability, what would Autistic Barbie look like? Physically, she would look like her doll counterparts, as her differences lie within her brain. I envision Autistic Barbie would come with a G-tube, showcasing feeding differences. Her heels would not touch the floor, as she toe walks her way through adversity. And her hands that serve as both communication and self-soothing, are perfectly poised in her signature flapping posture. Autistic Barbie would embody sensory differences as she’s dressed to impress in her adaptive and sensory friendly clothing, opting to wear her Billy Footwear versus the obligatory pink stilettos. In her hands that are always in motion: books, train schedules, and fidgets. Attached to the inside of her iconic Barbie box: noise canceling headphones, visual schedules of her day and a must-have tablet for communication and self-regulation. Accessories that are an absolute must for her to thrive in her neurotypical Barbie World.

Autistic Barbie would take it one step further, beyond representation to true accessibility. As a consumer, Gia grapples to dress, undress and manipulate Barbie’s tiny accessories with her fine motor challenges. Therefore, Autistic Barbie’s clothes and small accessories would be made with accessibility in mind with easy to get on and off clothing and manipulatives.

Life in Barbie Land is perfect if you’re stereotypical Barbie. But if you’re different, like Weird Barbie, then you are reduced to a life as a spectator, unable to fully participate and integrate into a world that is designed for Barbie, Ken and their neurotypical community.

Gia’s real world is much like Barbie Land. Built and designed for specificity, where differences are confusing and an intolerance and fear for the unfamiliar presides.

I have made it my mission to challenge these outdated and dangerous narratives in our communities, homes, and dinner tables. And today, I’m challenging Mattel, a toy company that shapes social values and attitudes to manufacture acceptance and inclusivity in the form of a neurodiverse barbie. Maybe then in the World of Barbie, everyone would have a seat to her show and a role to play, including Gia. Who is just an autistic girl, doing her best to live and thrive in a pink plastic neurotypical Barbie World.

Frankly Christina 💋