Comments on Sister Scholar: Homeless Doll Doesn't Need a Home

How nice of Heather Larson...er, Wilson to send a ...

2009-10-03T05:38:21.038-07:00

How nice of Heather Larson...er, Wilson to send a personal note to explain American Girl's humanitarian work for justice in America. How nice of Heather to give us the breakdown as to how much of that hundred bucks actually reaches the homeless...oh wait, she didn't do that, did she? I guess we'll just take her word for it.

I'm speechless

2009-10-01T16:39:06.387-07:00

I'm speechless

Well, it doesn't seem to shine a bright shiny ligh...

2009-10-01T13:36:01.874-07:00

Well, it doesn't seem to shine a bright shiny light on the problem of homelessness in any meaningful way, does it? I feel a little conflicted calling it arrogant, but...it does seem a bit, however "well-intentioned."

Since this is so appalling, I can't really wax exo...

2009-10-01T06:37:08.146-07:00

Since this is so appalling, I can't really wax exotic on why this is so offensive and outrageous. I will say that I applaud the statement, "If you are a Larson in MN, things probably worked out for you..." Oh my, how true--how true.

What were you thinking? This is the question that ...

2009-10-01T03:24:28.287-07:00

What were you thinking? This is the question that should be posed to the American Girl Company with their release of Gwen the homeless doll with a $95 price tag. While the creation of the doll may have had good intentions, it’s a stretch to use this toy to address the reality and the tragedy of homelessness.

The mere creation of Gwen can be classified as an oxymoron – a contradiction in terms. You know, remember in school when your teacher presented classic examples of an oxymoron to ensure that you understood the concept before you took the quiz. There were examples like jumbo shrimp, Hell’s Angels, original copy, and controlled chaos. Well add $95 homeless doll to the list.

The limited release of this doll can’t end soon enough. Gwen the homeless doll is (here’s an oxymoron for you) “a serious joke.”

It occurs to me to preface my comments with an apo...

2009-09-30T06:52:44.179-07:00

It occurs to me to preface my comments with an apology for stating the obvious. But since we are loosely discussing the merits of $100 homeless doll, I think I am on safe ground. Gwen embodies the stratification of wealth in the U.S., but more importantly, Gwen provides access to the "homeless problem," sanitized of the of the unseemly realities experienced by the folks at shelters like Mary's Place.

Sanitized messages are as American as...well, here's my favorite personal example: When the Olympics came to Los Angeles in 1984, there was much consternation about the homeless problem, and the undesirable image problem engendered by public displays of suffering. A two-fold solution emerged: First, the LAPD arrested bunches of homeless folks. As it was impossible to incarcerate all of the thousands of homeless men and women in the L.A area, the city employed a "sanitation" strategy, which included, in part, a donation made by a local clothier of hundreds of tuxedos, which were doled out to the men on Skid Row. Presumably, Olympic attendees would see slightly downtrodden Fred Astaire impersonators lying on the sidewalks, rather than suffering human beings.

A few of the "Larsons" are working at the shelter; far too many, though, will drop a C-note for a Gwen doll, in a lazy, ineffective effort to teach compassion to their children.