Doesn't look like Mankiller but that's just my opinion

[theking]

A new Barbie doll honors pioneering Cherokee Chief Wilma Mankiller. But it’s prompting some complicated feelings


Wilma Mankiller has many accomplishment s to her name — the first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a US quarter in her likeness, to name a few.

Now, the late Cherokee leader and activist also boasts a Barbie doll in her honor.

Toy company Mattel released a Wilma Mankiller Barbie last month as part of its “Inspiring Women” series, commemorating her lifelong advocacy for Native and women’s rights.

Many Cherokee citizens are excited about the release — the doll appears to be sold out online, while the Cherokee Nation has said there is an order backlog due to high demand. The Wilma Mankiller Barbie was also commemorated in an event on the Cherokee Nation on Tuesday.

“When Native girls see it, they can achieve it, and Wilma Mankiller has shown countless young women to be fearless and speak up for Indigenous and human rights,” Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. said in a statement on November 7.

“Wilma Mankiller is a champion for the Cherokee Nation, for Indian Country, and even my own daughter. She truly exemplifies leadership, culture and equality and we applaud Mattel for commemorating her in the Barbie Inspiring Women Series.”

But even as they celebrate the tribute to the revered Cherokee leader who died in 2010, some Cherokee people acknowledge having complicated feelings around the Wilma Mankiller Barbie.

Some Cherokee people see a missed opportunity
The Wilma Mankiller Barbie is inspired by a 2005 portrait that is now archived in the Library of Congress. In the photo, taken by her husband Charlie Soap, Mankiller wears a black dress with colorful stripes and carries a woven basket.

The Barbie doll version of Mankiller also holds a basket and wears a turquoise dress “with ribbon striping that represents the four directions: north, south, east and west,” according to Mattel’s website.

[theking]

Cherokee Nation slams Mattel over Barbie meant to honor historic female leader

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNCgE8a27A8