Mattel will release a Barbie in honor of the African-American journalist and suffragist Ida Bell Wells-Barnett, according to the brand’s Instagram. The new doll will be part of a line in which the brand talks about the heroines who “paved the way for generations of girls to dream big and change the world for the better.”
“Born into slavery, Ida grew up to be a journalist, activist and suffragist and shed light on the stories of injustice that African American people have faced in their lives,” Mattel said. “When kids learn about heroes like Ida Bell Wells, they don’t just imagine a better future—they know they have the power to bring it to life.”
Ida Bell Wells was born in 1862, a few months before the abolition of slavery in the United States by President Abraham Lincoln. Throughout her life, she fought against gender inequality, racial discrimination and was the founder of human rights organizations.
