Talking of Golliwogs.. . .. .

[WinkyWinkola]

I was a bit taken aback when I was looking for a dolly for my DD's birthday and I came across this:

{[https://ssl3.lon.gb.securedata.net/rosablue.com/dolls.htm It's the Mimi doll]]

I made an enquiry about the size of the lovely dolls on this site and also about the Mimi doll. I just felt it was a total caricature of the black slave especially when you can get her dress embroidered with Every Day is Wash Day .

The response to my enquiry was:

Mimi doubled as a student and our live-in nanny when we lived in Cape Town in the 80s.

She was very much part of the family when Penelope started to make her dolls. The whole family was still all living under the same roof then and each of us provided a name for at least one of her prototypes. Which is they all take their names after one of us.

Mimi liked the doll then and it while I understand the sensibility in Britain over the "golliwog" image, that is not what it means to us and we would be loathe to discontinue it.

Am I being over sensitive to find this doll offensive and not buy from the site as a result? Their other dolls are lovely.

FAQ

PCSMUM- how about laying off being insulting to FAQ...

sound of my head slamming down on my desk

britex - ths debate is not keeping racism alive. no one on here is writing 'lets get all those immigrants out, those blacks are stealing our jobs and those pakis are robbing our grannies' or whatever. that would be keeping racism alive. this is a valid debate about racism. There is a huge difference.

All the dolls are horrible.

That is true. All the dolls ARE fairly horrible. I'm sure we can agree on that.

The mind boggles I didn't know the national dress for Black South African women was the maid out-fit...

I have no time or inclination right now to be debating on this topic when I'm being insulted in the process.......

Off to the bar.

(but yes most of the dolls are horrible)

'And your direct experience of South/ern Africa is........ ' - that is what you asked me FAQ. wAS THAT just out of interest? or was it an attempt to devalue my arguments.

i think theyre cute-shame no boy ones.aha surely thats sexist????

Yes - none with grey hair and walking sticks either..........

FAQ - how's the new job going love?

yes how is the new job going? i presume its not at the commission for racial equality.

If it was, I'm sure she would be excellent.

PSCMUM your beginning to sound like a bully.

PCSMum You are very rude

I have reported your 2 posts with your insults towards me PSCMUM - I wouldn't usually but they have upset me. I'm not going to get drawn into this anymore, other than to say that I think there are better ways of putting a point across than insulting a person.

Ah! Another balanced debate, I see ...

quite reasonable FAQ

dittany-hilarious!

PCSMUM, i have to disagree with you. I understand your passion opposing apartheid i really do, but my point here is that we are talking about A DOLL! - an innocent doll! Most of the posters thought it was just a doll. so why does it have to stir up such Controversy? That's what I just dont Get!

Message withdrawn

o dear. hope everyone can lighten up. we've moved slightly soslightly off the issue. never mind. racism is still alive and well today and we need to adress that, that is much more important than the fact that sometimes I am a cow.