American Girl

[[File:American Girl 2023.svg|thumb|165px|right|The logo for American Girl.]]{{media}}
'''American Girl''' is an [[United States|American]] line of 18 inch (46 cm) dolls initially released in 1986 by the Pleasant Company and later acquired by {{wpl|Mattel}} in 1998. As the name implies, the doll line revolves around [[children]] of various walks of life throughout American history, with dolls which come with books telling of their backstory and the era the dolls' stories take place in. Although the books are written for girls who are at least eight years old, they endeavor to cover significant topics such as [[child labor]], [[child abuse]], [[poverty]], [[racism]], [[slavery]], animal cruelty and [[war]] in manners appropriate for the understanding and sensibilities of their young audience. Besides the line of dolls, playsets and associated literature, they also used to run a children's magazine from 1992 to 2019, also named ''American Girl''.{{efn|Not to be confused with the similarly named magazine ''The American Girl'' by the Girl Scouts of America.}}

Considering the above mentioned topics portrayed by the doll line as well as America's colorful sociopolitical history, the toy line garnered both criticism and controversy from various political and social commentators.

==Doll of a kind==
[[File:American Girl dolls.jpg|thumb|160px|left|Totally not Chucky's minions.]]
The American Girl line started in 1986 as the brainchild of {{wpl|Pleasant Rowland||,}} a former news reporter and educator who sought to come up with a more wholesome alternative to the wildly popular [[Barbie (film)#Background|Barbie]] fashion dolls by way of characters who are around the same (canonical) age as their owners, devoid of what amounts to objectified if not borderline sexualized depictions of women in fashion dolls and instead placing an emphasis on "history, [[family values]] and self-reliance".{{efn|It all went full circle when Mattel released a limited-edition American Girl doll based on the original striped swimsuit Barbie design.<ref>[https://creations.mattel.com/products/classic-barbie-by-american-girl-collector-doll-hyf93 Barbie by American Girl Collector Doll]</ref>}}<ref name="Inness1">{{Cite book |last=Inness |first=Sherrie A. |url=https://www.google.com.ph/books/edition/Delinquents_and_Debutantes/gJQUCgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=felicity%2520doll%25201991&pg=PA166&printsec=frontcover |title=Delinquents and Debutantes: Twentieth-Century American Girls' Cultures |date=1998-08-01 |publisher=NYU Press |isbn=978-0-8147-3764-4 |publication-date=1998-08-01 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Solly">{{Cite web |last=Solly |first=Meilan |title=The Enduring Nostalgia of American Girl Dolls |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/evolution-american-girl-dolls-180977822/ |access-date=2025-07-05 |website=Smithsonian Magazine |language=en}}</ref> Rowland enlisted her book [[author]] friend {{wpl|Valerie Tripp}} and [[Germany|German]] toymaker {{wpl|Götz (company)|Götz|,}} who supplied them with the face sculpt and body design used by the dolls to this day.<ref>Falligant, Erin; Calkhoven, Laurie; Anton, Carrie (6 September 2016). American Girl: Ultimate Visual Guide. Tripp, Valerie. DK Children. {{isbn|9781465444967}}.</ref>

The upscale marketing of the dolls, which cost $135 as of 2025 without extras,<ref>[https://www.americangirl.com/products/maryellen-doll-book-gdv68 Maryellen™ Doll & Book]</ref> drew scrutiny<ref>Fierro, Christina (9 October 2010). [https://web.archive.org/web/20101013160828/http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/10/09/how-much-does-an-american-girl-doll-really-cost/ "How much does an American Girl doll really cost?".] WalletPop. Archived from the [http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2010/10/09/how-much-does-an-american-girl-doll-really-cost/ original] on 13 October 2010. Retrieved 13 October 2010.</ref> which led to budget-price alternatives and questions about the doll line's backstories being hypocritical in the face of commercialism, e.g. the character of {{wpl|Kit Kittredge}} having her family endure the hardships of the [[Great Depression]], on top of Kit's doll line and associated collection selling for a price that flies in the face of those who suffered the Depression, not to mention that the movie starring {{wpl|Abigail Breslin}} as Kit is effectively a {{wpl|toyetic}} feature film plugging the toy line.<ref>[https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/kit-kittredge-an-american-girl Kit Kittredge: An American Girl]</ref>

Unsurprisingly, the doll line's popularity and subsequent controversies stemming from its (perceived) progressive messages led to a number of [[conservative]] and/or religiously-inclined companies to come up with alternatives which seek to adapt the appeal of an educational line of dolls to their ideological tastes, i.e. [[indoctrination]] in doll form.{{efn|This appears to have been satirised by Rockstar Games in the ''Lost and Damned'' DLC for ''[[Grand Theft Auto|Grand Theft Auto IV]]'' through fictitious advertisements for the "Gender Role Doll", which are a line of quasi-educational dolls with an elaborate backstory in apparent imitation of American Girl, in this case mocking and aping at redneck/conservative WASP stereotypes which is part and parcel with the series' brand of mature humor.}} Some of these conservative Christian American Girl imitators include Dolls from Heaven (whose roster is comprised of real-world [[saint]]s such as {{wpl|Thérèse of Lisieux}}, [[John Paul II]] and [[Joan of Arc]] among others)<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20231001031231/https://www.dollsfromheaven.com/store/c1/Mary_and_Joseph_Set.html Dolls from Heaven]</ref> the now-defunct Beautiful Girlhood{{efn|Made by Engel-Puppen for the also defunct fundamentalist group Vision Forum whose founders were sued for sexual abuse allegations.<ref>[http://extras.mysanantonio.com/pdf/2014CI05999.pdf Lourdes Torres-Manteufel V. Douglas Phillips, Vision Forum Ministries, Inc., And Vision Forum, Inc.], 15 April 2014. (PDF)</ref>}}<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322001926/http://www.christiannewswire.com/news/19781568.html Vision Forum Promotes Biblical Femininity Through Newly-Expanded Girls' Doll Line]</ref> and Life of Faith dolls,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20161025064022/http://babydollbemine.com/product-category/life-of-faith/ Life of Faith Archives - Baby Doll Be Mine]</ref> not to be confused with the similarly named Girls of Faith line, created by a conservative Christian mother named Sara McCord,<ref>[https://girlsoffaithdolls.com/ Girls of Faith]</ref> and the Faith Friends dolls, whose tagline "Christian Alternative to 18-inch Dolls" is a not-so-subtle dig at American Girl.<ref>[https://faithfriendsco.com/ Faith Friends Co.]</ref> Even [[Muslim]]s have joined in on the fun as well with the Salam Sisters dolls,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20140618210942/http://www.salamsisters.com/ Salam Sisters]</ref> though there have been earlier examples of a Muslim-friendly alternative to Western-made dolls such as the {{wpl|Fulla (doll)|Fulla}} [[Barbie]] knockoff doll.<ref>[https://www.arabnews.com/node/1430566/lifestyle "Barbie at 60, and how she made her mark on the Arab world"]. ''Arab News''. January 5, 2019. Retrieved December 16, 2019.</ref> One patently [[bullshit]] claim by conservatives is that American Girl has gone [[woke]] in recent years due to their promotion of [[LGBTQ+]] and [[feminist]] ideologies, never mind the fact that the line has already been progressive from the get-go, one instance being the character of Samantha Parkington standing up to [[Suffragette|women's suffrage]] and denouncing the horrors of [[child labor]] during her era,<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn6DHiwEXrI Christian American Girl Doll Knockoff Brands 😂]</ref> as well as that of [[Revolutionary War]]-era girl Felicity Merriman, whose free spirited and headstrong demeanour led her to then-unladylike if not outright scandalous acts such as [[cross-dressing]] out of her desire to be afforded the same freedoms as men do and not be bound to the constraints women had to bear at the time (the Merrimans owned at least two slaves in the ''Felicity'' stories, though it is obviously a [[Presentism#Historical determinism and context|reflection of the era]] and not an endorsement of any such human rights violations).{{efn|Fellow Virginian [[George Washington]] was noted to have been a slave owner despite [[Hypocrite|advocating and fighting for liberty and equality]], as was many of the United States' Founding Fathers. Washington recognized the paradox, rejected the notion of [[Black brute|black inferiority]], and was somewhat more humane than other slave owners. Despite personally becoming at least somewhat uneasy with the idea of holding a fellow human being captive and subservient to him, he could not, however, publicly stand up for the slaves' rights as he feared that breaking the status quo would be shocking to many other Virginians to say the least.<ref name=Ellis>Ellis, Joseph. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=QW-PDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA158 Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation]'', p. 158 (Vintage Books, 2002).</ref> Other historians, such as Stuart Leibinger, agree with Ellis that, "Unlike Jefferson, Washington and Madison rejected innate black inferiority...."<ref name=Leib>{{cite book|first=Stuart|last=Leibinger|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TR31VE5FHE4C&pg=183|title=Founding Friendship: George Washington, James Madison, and the Creation of the American Republic|page=183|publisher=[[University of Virginia Press]]|location=Charlottesville, Virginia|isbn=0-8139-1882-0|date=2001}}</ref>}}

===Will make a toothy grin for food===
A popular line in American Girl's catalogue is the ''Girl of the Year'' doll, where they release a limited-edition character each year with a backstory based on contemporary American life, usually revolving around subject matters and hobbies ([[Stereotype|stereotypically]]) associated with little girls such as gymnastics, painting and the like. One of these characters was Gwen Thompson, who is marketed as a companion to the ''actual'' 2009 girl of the year Chrissa Maxwell. The doll itself is fine and all, but what drew controversy was Gwen's story as a victim of homelessness, not helping matters was when the doll, like others in the line, was marketed at a premium of about a hundred dollars.<ref>[https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1927306_1927313_1927315,00.html Homeless American Girl - Top 10 Dubious Toys - TIME]</ref> Gwen's reception took a turn for the worse when media outlets and political [[pundit]]s spun exaggerated and out-of-context tales about the tastefulness of making an upscale toy out of a serious social issue; an unnamed representative of American Girl later responded: "The doll is meant to teach [[tolerance]] and is part of an outreach program teaching young girls how to spot [[bullying]] and stand up and speak out against it," stating that the characters "offer valuable lessons about life" and they were disheartened that there had been any confusion over their fictional characters.<ref>[http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Weekend/homeless-american-girl-doll-sparks-controversy/story?id=8676579 Meet Gwen Thompson, the "Homeless" American Girl]; abcnews.com, referenced September 26, 2009.</ref>

===Nine years a slave?===
The choice of story for Addy Walker, an [[African-American]] doll whose story is set in the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] era, was seen as questionable as she was initially depicted as a [[slave]];<ref>Wickouski, Sheila (2022-04-21). [https://msmagazine.com/2022/04/21/new-york-historical-society-black-dolls-feminist-art/ "'If These Dolls Could Talk': Art Exhibit Explores Role of Black Dolls in U.S. History and Challenges Racial Stereotypes".] msmagazine.com. Retrieved 2022-10-25.</ref> she later gained her [[freedom]] along with her family later in the storyline.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.boredpanda.com/american-girl-doll-criticism-shutdown/|title=Person Tries Showing How Offensive ‘American Girl’ Actually Is, Gets Shut Down For Not Knowing Facts|date=July 1, 2020|website=Bored Panda}}</ref> Even worse was with the tone-deaf handling of poor Addy when the company came up with a modern-day reimagining of the Historical dolls in an attempt to appeal to younger generations, where they blindly incorporated the [[tobacco]] field vignette into her packaging which echoed that of the original character's dark past as a runaway slave.<ref name="Hartmann">{{Cite web |last=Hartmann |first=Margaret |date=February 18, 2026 |title=American Girl Is Having a Midlife Crisis |url=https://www.thecut.com/article/samantha-next-chapter-american-girl-book-adults.html |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20260218184705/https://www.thecut.com/article/samantha-next-chapter-american-girl-book-adults.html |archive-date=February 18, 2026 |access-date=February 20, 2026 |website=The Cut |language=en}}</ref> Similarly, the character of Felicity Merriman — whose backstory takes place during the [[American Revolution]] — was put under scrutiny as the depiction of slavery in her stories (i.e. the Merriman family's slaves Marcus and Rose, who are referred to in the books as the family's [[Bullshit|"servants"]]) was not portrayed tactfully by failing to fully acknowledge the abuses African slaves endured for centuries as subservient objects for their masters to boss around.<ref name="Hartmann"/>

Some have also expressed concerns about American Girl's other characters of color, like Kaya'aton'my, a Nez Perce character whose story takes place in 1764, and Josefina, a Latina girl from New Mexico in 1824, are both set before colonization and have been criticized for avoiding the topic of genocide through these pre-Western contact settings. The character of Kaya, for one, was seen by critics as perpetuating the myth that native people are set in the past and ignores the issues faced by modern-day Indigenous Americans.<ref name="Medina">{{Cite book |last=Medina |first=Veronica E. |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar?cluster=6523097315956778344&hl=en&oi=scholarr |title=Theorizing American Girl |date=2007 |publisher=ProQuest}}[https://mospace.umsystem.edu/xmlui/handle/10355/4975 Theorizing American Girl]</ref> Setting Kaya'aton'my in the past also perpetuates the “memory of the Indian” as a fixture of the past and being necessary to the American [[manifest destiny]] belief that resulted in the [[genocide]] of native people across north America.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5250/0095182x.35.1.104|title=From the Tomahawk Chop to the Road Block: Discourses of Savagism in Whitestream Media|journal=American Indian Quarterly }}</ref> Hawaiian Nanea Mitchell, whose story took place in [[Pearl Harbor]] during [[World War II]], was also seen as ignoring the prior issues native Hawaiians faced when their (former) kingdom was subsumed under U.S. control by way of fiendish fruit companies,<ref name="Hugo">{{Cite web |last=Hugo |first=Kristin |date=November 10, 2017 |title=How Hawaii Lost Its Last Queen, Liliuokalani, to the Fruit Tycoons Dole |url=https://www.newsweek.com/how-hawaii-lost-its-last-queen-liliuokalani-fruit-tycoons-dole-708512 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171111042129/https://www.newsweek.com/how-hawaii-lost-its-last-queen-liliuokalani-fruit-tycoons-dole-708512 |archive-date=November 11, 2017 |access-date=February 20, 2026 |website=Newsweek}}</ref> instead depicting Hawaiians as happy to be a part of the United States as per United States military pamphlets portray of the same time period.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/3640299|title=The Fighting Man as Tourist: The Politics of Tourist Culture in Hawaii during World War II|author1=Farber, David|author2=Bailey, Beth|year=1996|journal=Pacific Historical Review|volume=65|issue=4|pages=641-660|via=JSTOR|doi=10.2307/3640299}}</ref> And while consultants from ethnic groups were hired to maintain veritas within the context of the books and their target audience, the dolls' expense posed a {{wpl|barrier to entry}} for those represented, making them more of a luxury for affluent families than an educational tool for children.

===Gays, gays everywhere===
====That's it, I'm Bailey-ing out!====
[[File:Kira Bailey.jpg|thumb|120px|right|[[Alex Jones|"They're turning the freakin' dolls and koalas gay!"]]]]
Kira Bailey, 2021 girl of the year and tourist in the glorious country of [[Australia|'Straya]], also became victim to the cultural zeitgeist when [[One Million Moms]] (OMM), a [[front group]] for the [[reactionary]] [[Christian]] cesspool [[American Family Association]], took umbrage at what they saw as the [[homosexual agenda]] infiltrating children's media by way of Kira's backstory where one of her aunts who lives down under has a [[lesbian]] relationship.<ref>[https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/american-girl-doll-fans-lgbt-kira-163115510.html American Girl Kira's LGBT aunts divide fans]</ref> [[Manufactroversy|They whined]]: 

{{quotebox|Why can’t the toy manufacturer let kids be kids instead of glamorizing a [[sinful]] lifestyle? […] American Girl is [[Think of the children|confusing our innocent children]] by attempting to normalize [[same-sex marriage]]. The doll company did not even include a warning so parents would have a heads-up.<ref>Riley Gillis, [https://www.metroweekly.com/2021/02/one-million-moms-outraged-over-american-girl-dolls-lgbtq-storyline/ One Million Moms 'outraged' over American Girl doll's LGBTQ storyline]. MetroWeekly, 15 February 2021.</ref>}}

====''The Ballad of the Black Girl with Two Dads''====
Prior to Kira's release, an article in the doll line's official magazine also came into OMM's crosshairs, when the magazine featured an African-American girl named Amaya Scheer who was adopted by a white gay couple; the latter having been heartbroken by the negative response towards the article and the hate mail ensuing from it.<ref>[https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/maryland-family-faces-anti-gay-backlash-after-child-featured-in-american-girl-magazine/68191/ Maryland Family Faces Anti-Gay Backlash After Child Featured in ‘American Girl' Magazine]</ref> OMM's threatened [[boycott]] [[pwned|spectacularly backfired]]; an outpouring of support from many prominent national media organizations resulted in a dramatic increase in financial support for a nonprofit [[charity]] organized by one of Scheer's fathers.<ref>Graham Gremore, [https://www.queerty.com/one-million-moms-latest-antigay-boycott-backfires-resulting-in-charity-receiving-300-increase-in-donations-20151202  One Million Moms’ Latest Antigay Boycott Backfires, Resulting In Charity Receiving 300% Increase In Donations]. Queerty, 2 December 2015.</ref>

====Puberty hit them like a truck====
{{cquote|YOUR NEW BOOK IS DISGUSTING. IT IS [[Bullshit|CHILD ABUSE]].|||Cindy McDonnell Stevens}}
{{cquote|Being transgender is not an illness or something to be ashamed of.|||American Girl}}
{{main|Transphobia}}
In 2022, an advice book entitled ''A Smart Girl's Guide to Body Image'' earned significant backlash from the garden-variety reactionaries, accusing American Girl of advocating [[child abuse]] through what is seen as unsound advice over a prepubescent [[transgender]] child's gender identity by way of {{wpl|puberty blocker|puberty blockers}} and hormonal therapy.<ref>[https://www.instagram.com/p/Cl5LbpYsum7/ Mrs. Richardson on Instagram: "Pages from AG’s new book."] [https://ghostarchive.org/iarchive/instagram/mrs.richardson_ag/2988470106112321979_2988470102245011101 (archive)]</ref> As usual, a number of conservative parents took to social media to express their outrage and disgust over perceived sexual deviancy or [[homosexual agenda|trans recruitment]]<ref>[https://www.christianpost.com/voices/american-girl-wants-to-trans-your-daughter.html American Girl wants to trans your daughter]</ref> and called for a [[boycott]] of the doll line whom they see is corrupting their children.<ref>[https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/american-girl-guidebook-pushing-puberty-blockers American Girl blasted for Body Image guidebook pushing puberty blockers for kids]</ref>

This ignores the fact that puberty blockers are reversible; while they may have adverse effects on some patients, it has been successfully used on those with {{wpl|precocious puberty}} and has been extensively studied and tested since the 1990s.<ref group="note">People who die ''whilst'' using puberty blockers are generally using them as part of palliative care. Notably, Lupron, a common puberty blocker, is used by prostate cancer patients.</ref><ref>[https://transfemscience.org/articles/puberty-blockers/ Puberty Blockers: A Review of GnRH Analogues in Transgender Youth]</ref><ref>Bil Browning, [https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2021/02/gop-rep-lauren-boehbert-uses-anti-gay-stereotypes-explain-vote-lgbtq-rights-bill/ GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert uses anti-gay stereotypes to explain vote against LGBTQ rights bill], LGBTQ Nation 25 Feb. 2021</ref><ref>[https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/gender-dysphoria/in-depth/pubertal-blockers/art-20459075 Pubertal blockers for transgender and gender diverse youth], Mayo Clinic</ref> The outrage over the book could also be seen as yet another [[manufactroversy]] by (conservative) media outlets to stir reactionary sentiment not unlike similar controversies involving children's media. And if you conservatives are going batty about a book you allege is [[Bullshit|condoning child abuse]], then explain ''why the fuck'' does [[To Train Up a Child|this book]] about promoting [[spanking|child corporal punishment]] exist and ''how the fuck'' is it still being sold on sites like Amazon.<ref>[https://www.amazon.com/Train-Up-Child-Training-Century-Revised-ebook/dp/B01MSOXPKO/ref=monarch_sidesheet To Train Up a Child: Child Training for the 21st Century-Revised and Expanded: New Material Added - Amazon.com]</ref>

====You're a TERF, Harry.====
{{cquote|The views expressed by the creator of ''Harry Potter'' do not align with that of the American Girl Wiki. Trans rights are human rights. Please see our stance [https://americangirl.fandom.com/wiki/American_Girl_Wiki:Trans_Rights_And_Inclusiveness here.]|||Nethilia}}
Things got a little complicated with American Girl when they partnered with Warner Bros.' ''Wizarding World'' franchise for a series of licensed accessories and play sets for the dolls, especially considering the doll line's (as well as Mattel's in general) progressive stance clashing with the [[transphobia|transphobic]] views of ''Harry Potter'' series creator [[J.K. Rowling]]. A number of fan sites, such as the American Girl Fandom wiki, have taken the effort of distancing themselves from Rowling's crankery (especially as the site's owner is from the LGBTQ+ community no less) and put up disclaimers on every Potter-related article, while at the same time acknowledging that while it is their duty to document the American Girl franchise as a whole, they take at least some responsibility for possibly encouraging people to purchase the items in question considering the views of the series creator.<ref>[https://americangirl.fandom.com/wiki/American_Girl_Wiki:Trans_Rights_And_Inclusiveness American Girl Wiki:Trans Rights And Inclusiveness]</ref> Peyton Thomas of ''[[LGBTQ Nation]]'' opined that American Girl's inclusion of ''Potter''-themed merchandise reeked of corporate hypocrisy prioritising profit over principles, stating "Is it ethical for American Girl to partner with JK Rowling? And is it ethical for you, the adult doll collector or nine-year-old doll enthusiast, to go along with the partnership? To purchase a Gryffindor sweater for Kit, or perhaps a plush owl for Addy?"<ref name="Thomas">{{Cite web |last=Thomas |first=Peyton |title=American Girl is all about equality. So why did it partner with JK Rowling? |url=https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2022/10/american-girl-equality-partner-jk-rowling/ |access-date=2026-01-11 |website=[[LGBTQ Nation]] |language=en}}</ref>

===A politician named Hillary===
[[File:AG Hillary book cover.jpg|thumb|110px|right|Where's the purged emails<ref>[https://www.bleachbit.org/cloth-or-something Cloth or Something]</ref> subplot?]]
{{cquote|I assumed this was a murder mystery or a story about how a plucky young girl destroyed 33,000 emails … Imagine my disappointment…|||An Amazon reviewer.}}
{{cquote|THIS is a role model for little girls? A power hungry woman who joins forces with a [[Bill Clinton|skirt-chasing creep]] in order to be president?|||Another Amazon reviewer.}}
In 2018 American Girl (by way of book publisher {{wpl|Scholastic}}) released a biographical book about [[Hillary Clinton]] entitled ''A Girl Named Hillary: The True Story of Hillary Clinton''. While some may call into question American Girl's choice of subject matter considering Mrs. Clinton's ''polarising'' reputation,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20221108081917/https://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/1338193023/ref=acr_dp_hist_1?ie=UTF8&filterByStar=one_star&reviewerType=all_reviews#reviews-filter-bar Amazon.com: Customer reviews: A Girl Named Hillary: The True Story of Hillary Clinton (American Girl True Stories): The True Story of Hillary Clinton (American Girl: A Girl Named)]</ref> other reviews of the book noted the non-partisan approach the author took when treading her life story.<ref>Rebecca Paley, ''A Girl Named Hillary: The True Story of Hillary Clinton (American Girl True Stories)''. Scholastic Inc., 2018. {{isbn|1338193023}}.</ref> Still, considering how it was released one year into the regime of Clinton's fiercest rival during the 2016 election, [[Donald Trump]], a biography about a contentious subject matter for children (and further marketing as a [[feminist]] girl power tale) can and will raise some eyebrows, with some threatening to boycott American Girl and cease buying toys from the company for allegedly indoctrinating young children into a particular political agenda.

And speaking of Trump, the 2016 direct-to-video special ''{{wpl|An American Girl Story – Melody 1963: Love Has to Win}}'' – which takes place in Detroit, Michigan during the Civil Rights Movement – incorporated a white character named Donald who is depicted as a racist bully at the school Melody attends in, where he constantly heckles and taunts the poor Black girl, telling Melody to "go back to Africa". Donald, portrayed by child actor Garrett McQuaid, was originally named Douglas, but Tara Sorenson — head of kids programming at Amazon Studios — misread his name as "Donald" when reading the script and told the producers to run with it. The film's writer, Alison McDonald, said this was a deliberate choice, and given the timing of ''Melody''{{'}}s release coinciding with the 2016 elections and the film's subject matter (on top of mainstream media companies and celebrities wasting no time to throw potshots at Trump left and right), this isn't a surprise.<ref name="Gibbs">{{Cite news |last=Gibbs |first=Constance |date=2016-10-21 |title=‘American Girl’ dresses down racist ‘Donald’ in new Amazon film |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2016/10/21/american-girl-dresses-down-racist-donald-in-new-amazon-film/ |access-date=2024-12-25 |work=New York Daily News |language=en-US}}</ref> That being said, Amazon producing what amounts to a veiled anti-Trump hit piece marketed towards (American) children became greatly ironic when [[Jeff Bezos]] posted a congratulatory message towards Trump on 
Twitter
 X in 2024.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/06/media/jeff-bezos-congratulates-trump-victory-amazon-post/index.html|title=Jeff Bezos congratulates Trump for 'extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory'|last=Reilly|first=Liam|website=CNN|date=November 6, 2024|access-date=November 27, 2024}}</ref> As an aside, Trump made a spiteful remark towards American Girl's parent company Mattel in relation to extortionate tariffs he imposed across countries during his second regime, threatening to slap a 100 percent tariff at Mattel's expense, American Girl included, further stating that he did not "think that a 'beautiful baby girl' needs needs to have 30 dolls." His remarks predictably caused a stir online with many toy collectors taking umbrage at Trump's callous statements.{{efn|Which given Mattel's ownership of the American Girl brand, and the fact that [[Barbie]] and American Girl collectors alike do amass quite a collection, is certainly patronising and insulting at the same time.}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=May 9, 2025 |title=Donald Trump threatens to stop Barbie dolls being sold in US |url=https://www.newsweek.com/trump-threatens-barbie-100-percent-tariff-2070023 |access-date=May 9, 2025 |website=Newsweek |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite news |date=May 9, 2025 |title=Trump gives big threat to stop barbie dolls in the US. His remarks create buzz online |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/global-trends/us-news-trump-threaten-100-percent-tariffs-barbie-dolls-mattel-manufacturing-us-his-remarks-create-buzz-online/articleshow/121030107.cms?from=mdr |access-date=May 9, 2025 |work=The Economic Times |issn=0013-0389}}</ref>

===Putrid Peanut===
In 2025 American Girl collaborated with the fashion brand Posh Peanut for a series of themed clothing and accessories for children and adults – particularly those who grew up playing with the dolls.<ref>[https://poshpeanut.com/en-ph/collections/american-girl-x-posh-peanut American Girl® Clothing & Accessories - Posh Peanut®]</ref> While the collaboration is cute and all and people were initially enthusiastic about it, things quickly soured when skeletons from Posh Peanut founder Fiona Sahakian's closet emerged, outing Sahakian as an alleged racist and Trump dick-rider. A concerned American Girl fan found that in 2016, Sahakian posted a selfie of herself on [[Instagram]] where she wore a "Cowboys and Indians" costume which many have viewed as culturally insensitive towards Indigenous American groups. The fan also dug up some of Sahakian's alleged far-right political affiliations, particularly that of the [[Republican Party]], [[Joe Rogan]] and the aforementioned Trump and his family of no-gooders, and when the fan pressed Sahakian on the issue, the latter simply blocked them out of spite.<ref>{{Cite web |title=posh peanut founder is racist and blocked me. |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/americangirl/comments/1hyd4fq/posh_peanut_founder_is_racist_and_blocked_me/ |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=www.reddit.com}}</ref> Many in the American Girl community – especially Gen Z and Gen Alpha fans whose political views lean towards progressivism – came to view the collaboration as hypocritical and tone-deaf considering the doll brand's stated commitment towards diversity and inclusivity.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Posh Peanut Founders and Politics |url=https://www.reddit.com/r/americangirl/comments/1hxvfm9/posh_peanut_founders_politics/ |access-date=2025-08-14 |website=www.reddit.com}}</ref>
Some have also noted that the Posh Peanut merchandise could only be purchased at their website and not from American Girl directly, apparently in an attempt by Mattel to wash their hands clean from the affair.

===All hail Sombrita!===
[[File:Sombrita the goat.jpg|thumb|120px|right|What a mighty specimen is the goat! What strength! What endurance! What capriciousness!]]
If there's one saving grace to all the craziness the doll line has been in for the past few decades, it isn't the introduction of Mexican-American character Josefina Montoya, but her pet [[goat]] Sombrita, who was introduced in the book ''Happy Birthday, Josefina!'' and with a plush goat toy to tie in with said book.<ref>[https://americangirl.fandom.com/wiki/Sombrita_the_Baby_Goat Sombrita the Baby Goat]</ref>

Us here at [[RationalWiki]] commend the fine people at American Girl for putting us in consideration when they made the Josefina Montoya doll collection and associated playsets.

==Not-so-pleasant Rowland==
<!-- I vaguely recall an article alleging that Pleasant Rowland was part of a self-actualization cult. Can anyone track it down and verify? -->
Pleasant Rowland herself also became subject to scrutiny with her business decisions, most notably when she attempted to buy a {{wpl|Aurora, Cayuga County, New York|New York town}} to tie in with the doll line, something which the residents were none too pleased about. The incident was satirized in the novel ''{{wpl|Happyland (novel)|Happyland}}'' by J. Robert Lennon.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20120712082037/http://www.aurorany.org/happyland.html Aurora NY - a literary inspiration?]</ref><ref>[https://archive.ph/OBiCG Reclaim Aurora from Pleasant Rowland]</ref>

==See also==
*''[[Barbie: The Movie]]'' - based on another toy franchise from Mattel
*''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic]]'' - based on a toy franchise from rival company Hasbro whose fandom is also composed of adult collectors

==External links==
*[https://www.americangirl.com Official website]
*[http://americangirl.fandom.com American Girl Wiki] (hosted on [[Wiki#Fandom|Fandom]])
*[http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/subcultures/american-girl Know Your Meme article], a high-level (albeit outdated) look at the fandom.

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note|2}}

==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Books]]
[[Category:Business]]
[[Category:Culture wars]]
[[Category:Feminism]]
[[Category:Goats]]
[[Category:Homophobia]]
[[Category:Magazines]]
[[Category:Social justice]]
[[Category:Transphobia]]
[[Category:Media hysteria]]
[[Category:United States]]

Categories: Books, Business, Culture wars, Feminism, Goats, Homophobia, Magazines, Social justice, Transphobia, Media hysteria, United States