Why Bratz dolls are still important today
As a child in the early 2000s, I was unusual in the sense that I had not a single doll with white skin. I remember my parents going so far as to replace gifts with dolls of color to keep it that way. As a result, I grew up with lots of Bratz dolls. At the time, I thought my parents’ rules were unnecessary, but when I compare my childhood to those of other black girls, I understand. Many black girls are so used to being surrounded with images of whiteness, they start to think “Well what’s wrong with me?” and wish to be something that they’re not. Growing up with Bratz saved me from that insecurity while giving me confidence in my identity as a black girl.
When Bratz dolls were released onto shelves, they had some formidable competition. They were up against Barbie, the golden standard of dolls since she hit the market in 1959. One would think that doll designers would want their dolls to resemble Barbie as much as possible. So it came as a surprise when Bratz came out in clunky shoes, baggy pants, crop tops, and cut creases. And to top that three out of four girls in the group were minorities. Though the dolls didn’t catch on immediately, when they did, they took over, selling 125 million units in the first five years.
The first thing that caught the public’s eye was their clothes. They attracted criticism from parenting blogs and even the American Psychological Association for sexualizing young girls. A parent even went so far as to say “I have refused to buy them because of the slutty implications of their doll clothes” when voicing their concerns in a Yahoo forum. Obviously, these concerns came about before the #MeToo Movement or Slutwalks were a thing. However, Bratz pushed the argument that revealing clothes should not be used to make assumptions about a person’s sexual activity and that revealing clothes should not be used as an excuse to sexualize children.
Outside of a political context, Bratz’ influence on fashion can be seen today, almost a decade later. In 2019, the trends of the 2000s all came back, but with a Bratz twist. People are rocking the platform shoes, baby tees, chunky jewelry, and mini skirts that were the Bratz’ signature in the early 2000s. And it doesn’t even end there. Many women have even credited Bratz for inspiring the makeup trends of today like cut creases, exaggerated lashes, and overlined lips.
After the dolls came the movies and then a television series. When Bratz: The Series premiered on Cartoon Network in 2005, Bratz revealed more of their charms to the world. The show followed the main four girls, Sasha, Chloe, Yasmine, and Jade, as they navigated the struggles of running their own teen magazine while still in high school. That in itself was a message to young girls that not only inspired entrepreneurship, but told them “you’re never too young”. Also throughout the whole series, there is no single Bratz girl that was highlighted over the others. Yes, they all were very different from each other, but they were all equally valuable in the Bratz universe. There was never any dramatic focus on a love interest or any competition between the girls. If anything, they stood with each other before anyone else and were supportive of each other’s goals. They set a good example for their young audience of what a healthy friend group of young women should look like.
The Bratz were more than just dolls. They were examples of feminism, friendship, and diversity as well as the blueprint for today’s fashion and beauty trends. To this day, many of us who grew up with them hold on to the values we learnt watching them along with the fashion tastes they inspired.
