"Black Barbie was in the background of my childhood," explained Ameirah Saafir, Ph.D., an adolescent studies professor and commentator in the film, as reported by the Fullerton Observer.

it wasn't until 1980 that Larson could see herself in Barbie. “So, there was Christie, there was Nickie, they were all Black friends of hers, but this was the first time a Black doll had the ...