Doll News Spring 2021 - 112

Dressed in a full-length dashiki dress and matching
headwrap, Maya Angelou Barbie holds a mock copy of the
author's first book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.

head sculpt: two ponytails, with short curly hair, and two
ponytails with bangs. Karen's photo includes two dolls
with short curly hair. The dolls were dressed in a variety
of brightly colored clothes.
Shindana Toys, a Division of Operation Bootstrap,
was founded to bring revenue into the African American
community during the aftermath of the 1965 Watts,
California revolt against police brutality. Several residents
were hired to work in the Shindana Doll Factory. In
November 2020, 52 years after the doll made its debut, Baby
Nancy was inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame.
Black and White versions of Effanbee's 16-inch all-vinyl
doll, Twinkie, from 1968 are the last known dolls used by
Drs. Kenneth and Mamie Clark in their Dolls Test, which
was first conducted during the late 1940s. The test was
devised using identical dolls except for race to determine
how racial segregation impacted Black children. Test
results usually showed that Black children chose the White
doll when instructed to: give me the doll you'd like to play
with; give me the doll that is a nice doll; give me the doll that is
a nice color. With most negative suggestions (e.g., give me
the doll that looks bad), Black children chose the Black doll.
The Clarks' Dolls Test (a.k.a. the Doll Test) was used in
the 1954 Supreme Court decision that ruled segregated
schools unconstitutional. The dolls' role in this decision
112

SPRING 2021

Made of mixed
white and brown
polymer clay, a 6
½-inch Hitty by
Gloria Y. Rone
is the artist's
rendition of the
doll inspired by
the book, Hitty
Her First 100 Years
by Rachel Field.

proves that dolls are not just playthings. They can be used
to teach, to learn, to promote diversity, and much more.
Celley or Calley, by Barbara J. Larsen stands 22-inches.
She has a painted and gessoed cloth face, and a sturdilystuffed, brown cloth body, arms, and legs. The hair is
made of stiffened ribbons, painted black, that form curls.
The clothing is all original. The doll's neck bears the
handwritten name C-e- or C-a-l-l-e-y, the artist's signature,
and the 1992 year the doll was made. Acquired on the
secondary market without papers or otherwise identifying
matter, it is difficult to determine if the handwritten letter
after the C in the doll's name is an " e " or an " a. "
Michelle Obama, Official White House Portrait Doll
was released in 2010 by The Franklin Mint. The 16-inch
doll is all vinyl and marked on the head " TFM/©2010. "
The hair is a black wig. The painted facial features capture
Michelle Obama's likeness. The doll is dressed in a black
sheath, pearl stud earrings, double-strand pearl necklace,
gold-tone wristwatch, and black low-heeled pumps. A
hangtag, certificate of authenticity, and a personalized doll
stand were included.
One of several dolls in Mattel's Inspiring
Women series, Rosa Parks Barbie, released in 2019,
commemorates Parks' refusal to give up her bus seat
to a White passenger on a Montgomery, Alabama bus

Doll News Spring 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Doll News Spring 2021