Barbie has been an astronaut, an architect, a Nascar driver, and a news anchor.
Now, there's an online movement to get her to attempt what could be her biggest feat yet: going bald to fight cancer. And the movement is being spearheaded in part by a South Jersey mother who battled the disease.
A Facebook page titled “Beautiful and Bald Barbie! Let's see if we can get it made” was started a few days before Christmas. By Wednesday afternoon, the page had more than 15,000 fans. The goal is to get toy maker Mattel Inc. to create a bald Barbie in support of children with cancer.
Friends Rebecca Sypin of Lancaster, Calif. and Jane Bingham of Sewell, N.J. live on opposite coasts but have both been affected by the disease, hatched the idea for the social media movement because Barbie is an influential children's toy.
Mattel issued the following statement:
We are honored that Jane Bingham and Beckie Sypin believe that Barbie could be the face of such an important cause. Mattel appreciates and respects the passion that has been built up for the request for a bald Barbie doll. We are constantly exploring new and different dolls to be added to our line; and as you might imagine, we receive hundreds of passionate requests for various dolls to be added to our collection.
We are dedicated to supporting a variety of children’s organizations and needs throughout the year through a multitude of philanthropic activities. In the past 10 years alone, Mattel and the Mattel Children’s Foundation have donated close to $30 million and more than half a million toys to children's hospitals across the country. We support the Mattel Children’s Hospital UCLA and the National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions, which encompasses approximately 220 hospitals. Mattel also actively supports Children Affected by AIDS Foundation and the Make-A-Wish organization around the world. In addition, many of our employees have given countless hours of volunteer service to these and other children’s organizations. Our donations benefit countless numbers of boys and girls in children’s hospitals each year who deal with a variety of illnesses and challenges including cancer.
NBC10 has tried reaching out to Bingham for comment.
