Barbie Manufacturer Launches A Gender Neutral Doll Collection 'Free Of Labels'

This doll can be a boy, a girl, neither, or both. Mattel, the same company that created Barbie dolls, calls it the world's first gender-neutral doll and hopes to redefine who gets to play with what, erasing the traditional taboos and gender roles.

"Kids' toys are a reflection of culture and as the world continues to celebrate the positive impact of inclusivity, we felt it was time to create a realistic doll line free of labels," Kim Culmone, Senior Vice President of Mattel Fashion Doll Design said.

The versatile new dolls are available in a variety of skin tones. They can be styled with a long-haired wig and dressed in pants, a skirt, or shorts, as well as three different styles of shoes, sunglasses, and other accessories. Like TIME noted, the 11-inch dolls' "lips are not too full, the eyelashes not too long and fluttery, the jaw not too wide. There are no Barbie-like breasts or broad, Ken-like shoulders," the magazine said.

For quite some time, millennial parents have pushed back against gender stereotypes in toy. And major sellers have been listening. Their buying habits already influenced Disney banish "boys" and "girls" labels from its children’s costumes, inviting girls to dress as Captain America and boys as Belle. Last year, Mattel also did away with "boys" and "girls" toy divisions, replacing them with non-gendered sections, for example, dolls or cars.

These dolls should sell $29.99 a pop, with the slogan "A doll line designed to keep labels out and invite everyone in." With this move, the company is betting on where it thinks the country is going, even if it means alienating a substantial portion of their buyers. According to a Pew Research survey, while 76% of the public supports parents' steering girls to toys and activities traditionally associated with boys, only 64% endorse steering boys toward toys and activities associated with girls.