Recently the doll market, especially Barbie, has gotten a makeover in terms of diversity. In recent years Barbie as expanded its collectors series to include celebrities such as Zendaya, Ava DuVernay, Nicki Minaj, and Jennifer Lopez. Great strides in reaching a broader demographic no doubt, but now fans are pushing for Selena Quintanilla to join the selection of limited-edition dolls.
Remy Ocampo started the push for a Selena Barbie by forming a petition for Mattel to issue an official Barbie exhibiting the Latina icon’s curvy figure and epic fashion style. “As a huge Selena fan and Barbie collector, we want Mattel to create an official Selena doll in her likeness. There has yet to be any curvy Hispanic barbie dolls in any Barbie line and we think Selena is a perfect candidate for that kind of representation,” Ocampo said.
In the past, there have been other Selena dolls, but Ocampo says that Mattel has the power to legitimize Selena’s influence to generations within the Latin community. And so far, the petition has acquired more than 3,500 signatures, only a few under its goal of 5,000 signatures. While it is unclear whether Mattel is considering the petition, it definitely wouldn’t be a bad look to continue to expand the Barbie collections to other diverse icons and body types.
Fans can sign the Change.org petition here.