Barbie honors Laverne Cox with her own doll

Laverne Cox had plenty of “firsts” in her lifetime. She was the first transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in the acting category, the first transgender person to win a Daytime Emmy Award, and is the first transgender person to have their own Madame Tussauds wax figure. 

She can now add being the first transgender person have her own Barbie collectable doll to the list. 

Barbie and Mattel decided to honor Cox with her own Barbie doll just a few days shy of her 50th birthday.

Barbie and Mattel will also be making a donation in Cox’s name to the TransFamilySOS foundation, which was formed to help create an accepting society to LGBTQ youth. 

In regards to the creation of her Barbie doll, Cox played a key part in how her doll looked; looking at sketches, skin tone samples, and the type of shoes the doll would wear. 

Cox spoke very highly about her collaboration with Barbie and Mattel. She went on to say,“It’s been a dream for years to work with Barbie to create my own doll.” She continued,  “I can’t wait for fans to find my doll on shelves and have the opportunity to add a Barbie doll modeled after a transgender person to their collection. I hope that people can look at this Barbie and dream big like I have in my career. The space of dreaming and manifesting is such a powerful source and leads you to achieve more than what you originally thought was possible.”

Lisa McKnight, Mattel’s Executive Vice President and global head of Barbie and dolls, was also quite excited about Cox’s collaboration with Mattel and Barbie.

McKnight went on to say, “We couldn’t be more excited to celebrate award-winning actress, producer, writer and LGBTQ+ rights trailblazer Laverne Cox with a doll.”

“We are proud to highlight the importance of inclusion and acceptance at every age and to recognize Laverne’s significant impact on culture with a Tribute Collection Barbie,” said McKnight.

Cox’s doll will be amongst good company in Barbie’s Tribute Collection with dolls of Vera Wang, Lucille Ball, and Queen Elizabeth II. 

Cox’s doll can be purchased online and can be found at Walmart and Target across the country beginning May 25. The doll will be priced at $39.99.

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Damani Eason

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