Barbie addresses white privilege in latest YouTube video: 'White people get an advantage that they didn't earn'
‘When we don’t say anything, we’re just letting it continue,' says Barbie
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The YouTube account for Barbie has uploaded a video addressing white privilege in which an animated version of the doll speaks about her societal advantages as a white person.
The Barbie YouTube account is hugely popular, with more than 9.7 million subscribers. Previous videos include fashion hacks, lemon cake tutorials and bedroom makeovers.
However, Barbie recently shared a video about racism in which she speaks to another animated character, Nikki, who is black.
She begins by addressing the importance of the Black Lives Matter protests and other anti-racism movements.
"This stuff isn't easy to talk about, which is exactly why we have to talk about it," she says.
Nikki goes on to discuss incidents of racism she has experienced.
She recalls a time when she was selling stickers with Barbie on the beach and was stopped by security three times; they did not even notice Barbie.
Nikki also explains how, after getting a high score on a French exam for a special club, the teacher told her she only scored so high because she was lucky.
"Why didn't you stay in the [French] club and prove him wrong?" Barbie asks, to which Nikki explains, "I don’t want to have to constantly prove and re-prove myself.
"Usually when I talk about these things, people make excuses. They say things like, 'Well, maybe you should have had a permit for selling on the beach.'
"But those are just excuses. People did these things because I was black, and they made the wrong assumptions about me."
Barbie responds by explaining how Nikki’s experiences made her aware of her own white privilege.
“That's not fair, because that means that white people get an advantage that they didn't earn, and black people get a disadvantage that they don't deserve,” she says.
Nikki concludes the video by thanking Barbie for her support: “Because when enough of us stand together, people pay attention.”
“Right,” Barbie replies. “Because when we don’t say anything, we’re just letting it continue.”
You can watch the full video, which has been widely praised on social media, on YouTube here.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments