About 1,000 Black rag dolls that came with instructions on how to abuse them have been pulled from a New Jersey discount store chain after complaints that the dolls were racist.
The “Feel Better Dolls,” created with black fabric and hair made of red, black, green and yellow yarn, were yanked from the shelves of One Dollar Zone stores after customers and a state assemblywoman called the dolls racist.
The dolls, which also came in two other colors, featured a tag that instructed owners to grab it “firmly by the legs and find a wall to slam” it while yelling “I feel good. I feel good.”
New Jersey Assemblywoman Angela McKnight posted photos of the doll on her Facebook page after seeing them in a One Dollar Zone in Bayonne.
“Racism has no place in the world, and I will not tolerate it, especially not in this district,” McKnight wrote in the post. “When I saw the doll in person, I cringed and was truly disheartened by the thought of a black child being beaten by another child or an adult for pure pleasure. To have a product depict or teach children that it is OK to hit another child, regardless of race, in order to feel good is sick. Dolls should be a symbol of love, care and affection.”
One Dollar Zone issued a statement of apology and quickly removed the dolls from the shelves of three stores.