"American Girl" Dolls: Whip-Sawed From Left to Right

The new issue of Newsweek summarizes the current conservative dustup over American Girl (The Politics of Playtime). But what many may not remember is that this isn't the first time that American Girl has been challenged publicly.

Ten months ago, it was the Hispanic community that raised objections to the dolls, in particular for biographical materials distributed with one of the dolls that described Pilsen, a long-standing immigrant entry point in Chicago, as an undesireable (dangerous) neighborhood: Mexican- American Girl creates controversy (adFreak).

This time around, the dispute basically revolves around conservative parents' concerns about the pro-choice stance of an affiliated organization called Girls, Inc.

Not quite as fun as the A&F sex and t-shirts scandal from last week(A&F TShirt Controversy: Who Needs Brains?), but people take these things seriously.

Want to know more? Salon took on the American Girl phenomenon earlier this year: Girl Crazy.