Toymaker Mattel has honored another one of the NASW Social Work Pioneers®, Wilma Mankiller, by issuing a Barbie doll she inspired.
Mankiller’s father was Cherokee and she developed a deep appreciation for her heritage. Mankiller (1945-2010) became the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation and helped create the office of Indian Justice within the U.S. Department of Justice.
Cherokee Nation Chief Chuck Hoskin issued this statement after the doll was released: “When Native girls see it, they can achieve it, and Wilma Mankiller has shown countless young women to be fearless and speak up for Indigenous and human rights. She not only served in a role dominated by men during a time that tribal nations were suppressed, but she led. Wilma Mankiller is a champion for the Cherokee Nation, for Indian Country, and even my own daughter. She truly exemplifies leadership, culture and equality and we applaud Mattel for commemorating her in the Barbie Inspiring Women Series.”
Mankiller is the second NASW Pioneer Mattel has honored. They previously issued a commemorative Barbie doll of Ida B. Wells (1862-1931), an American investigative journalist, early leader in the civil rights movement, and one of the founders of the NAACP.