Dolls with special needs cause controversy

My daughter has high-functioning autism together with a plethora of medical issues, including a gastric feeding tube and a j-tube. She had seen some dolls with g-tubes on-line and when we brought home a Mickey Mouse doll which we had made with a g-tube she had the biggest smile you could imagine. As many have stated, she wanted and needed a doll that was like her. Indeed, it is the "normal" dolls that are one-dimensional because they portray a world of perfectly formed humans. Don't get me wrong, my daughter has a toy chest full of Barbie, Bratz, and other dolls and she loves to play with all of them. Indeed, I don't think she would even want a chest full of special needs dolls because she knows that the world around her is not filled with special needs. The real world is a rainbow of humanity. Why shouldn't the imaginary world of dolls be the same.

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When my boys were growing up, they were majorly into Rescue Heros, I remember there being the Rescue guy in the wheelchair, and one with crutches, we had those too. They got just as much play time as did the rest, and they were "cooler" because they had fancy stuff, the wheelchair hooked to a rescue sled, the crutches had a grappling hook, stuff like that. their heros also had glasses, which is something you don't see much of, (dolls with glasses) and how many kids wear them?

Rescue heros are hard to find anymore, but they were VERY cool, and practically indestructible.

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"defects/weaknesses/negative traits"? Well, my daughter has Down's Syndrome, and I don't see "her way" of doing things as a "defect, weakness or as a negative trait". How dare anyone say that being "differently-abled" is negative. People that think like this make life so difficult for everyone that doesn't "fit" into their box. They just want everyone that doesn't fit to fade into the background and cease to exist. If we could accept and embrace toys and dolls that are much more "realistic" and portray a wide variety of faces and bodies, after a while we wouldn't have the discrimination that we have now in the world. I mean really, plastic surgeons are raking in the bucks and millions of young women and girls are destroying their lives and dying because of the impossible looks of the so called "pretty" doll. I think pretty, smart, funny, talented and creative comes in a lot of diverse boxes. I think these dolls are an excellent idea. Full speed ahead (lead by a wheel chair of course).

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I am a first grade teacher and was glad to see that someone was thinking about special needs kids, as well as other kids (all) who need exposure to different people. I was surprised to find many other companies already make a quality product of dolls with different abilities, including Down's kids, and the dolls are CUTE! I just used a search engine, any would work I'm sure. I used Google and saw the good the bad and the not so good... Anyway, for those that want cute dolls, so far I would recommend: DOWNICREATIONS for beautiful dolls of Down's kids. Their site and toys look well planned and thoughtful. LAKESHORE (teacher supply company) that has both special needs kids and adults as dolls. There is also adaptive equipment for dolls with disabilities. Also BEYOND PLAY has soft dolls that come looking like any kid, but sells equipment for them! You can get a seeing eye dog, dark glasses with a cane, a wheelchair, walker, crutches with leg braces. They do not have a Down's kid, though, or special surgury marks, etc. SEW-DOLLING has a collection called Sew-Able dolls with prosthetics and such. You can get dolls that have had chemo. You can also get therapy equipment for them. These look like vinyl dolls. So far it looks like most of them are girl dolls.

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i think that these dolls are a great idea. i think those opposed to these dolls simply perpetuate american society's fear of people with developmental disablities. i work with such individuals, and their personal triumphs should be celebrated. if a child with down syndrome, for example, would feel more comfortable having a doll with her unique feature, then she should have access to one.

we, as a western society, need to accept these individuals as normal because their "disabilities" are normal to them.

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I was born with a thyroid birth defect and have always had an ugly surgical scar on my neck shaped like a large Z..I have a daughter born with spina bifida with a scar around her whole back and abdomen. I have a daughter who has seizures. I have a son who wears trifocals to see. They are all intelligent children. I played with dolls when young. I didn't look like Barbie, or any of the beautiful dolls I had. But I loved to dream that I did and live in my fantasy land as a child. I asked my kids. They said dolls should be about fantasy, what you dream about, not reality. NO, I dont think the dolls are appropriate. Sincerely Becky (reg.nurse and mom)

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people, people, people. anything and i mean anything that can help a special needs child feel better about theirself can't help but be a good thing. regardless of their requirements if it takes a doll that's mixed race, or has downs syndrome, or CP, then so be it. i don't know how it can be argued at all.

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I think this is a disgrace. It is one thing to have dolls that are ethnic but this is stepping way over the line. I think who ever thinks this is funny or created this is ignorant. They should look for some other way to make money.

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WOW!!!!!!!!!
As a father of a child with special needs I feel that these dolls are GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In the tidbit ii read, it says that childhood is about fantasy, about make-believe, and about imagination. I could not agree more. It shows a doll that is like them, and then takes it into the fantasy, make-believe and imagination, saying that ALL is possible. I do believe that ALL is possible. A child with a disability is a CHILD first. They may do things differently, but they can and DO, DO IT!! Again I think the dolls are GREAT for both children with and without disabilities.
That's my 2 cents and I'm sticking to it.

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heres an idea ... stop making/buying any and all dollsfrom Barbie to Cabbage Patch and GI Joes ... if a kid wants to pretend to be a mother or father the kid will create a baby out of whatever is at hand ... frankly though ... this smacks of the sexually correct dolls that therapists use when working with abused kids and if you really feel a need for dolls that highlight a special need or disability (depending on how you look at it) then I feel that they should be limited in sale to therapists who can utilize them properly for the purpose of bringing to the forefront a difference that many kids find hard to deal with ...

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Are we not trying to teach our children that no matter how different we look, walk, talk etc, that we are no different than anyone else.
Just because a doll has the special needs does not mean that only children with the same needs are the only one that can purchase one. Teach all children to accept it. Too one dimensional some say, well to children life is. Does tweaking mean we would have to sell extra parts to make the doll perfect.? Once again we are different. Having several dolls that resemble numerous types of disabilities would be a plus. FOR ALL CHILDREN

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The Cabbage Patch was a special needs doll. Didn't they come racial diversed as well. We have always had special needs dolls around as long as we have had Barbie, The Jerry Talker or American Girl. This isn't something so new.

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Ah, yes, the 'other people are object lessons' argument.

NEXT!

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One of the commentors to the original article noted that the *second* company making dolls with Downs Syndrome (also linked to in the article itself) makes much more realistic-looking dolls.

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Thank you. You're an idiot.

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I have a brother with special needs and I have also worked in special education for years. Those people who think that it dosn't reflect or that special needs don't care anyway, those are people who I hope don't have a child with specail needs. and who's to say that They are special needs maybe were the one's who are different.
And why does it matter the way dolls are made you make ethnic dolls that look like ethnic people why can't you make dolls that look like other people.

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I think a bald hairstyle is a great idea. I dunno about the face changes though. Don't all dolls have the same blank faces anyway? Realism really takes away from the imagination.

When my sister and I played with dolls one broke his legs off and he became our handicapped doll (not very realistic, no chair or anything) but I think kids create characters that exist in their world regardless of what you give them, especially when it comes to details. I think the facial details will be lost on them.

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