What happen to the days when you could go shopping for a doll and not have to worry about upsetting an entire segment of the population?
Parents, whose young daughters are avid American Girl doll fans, listen up: Some vocal historians don’t want you to buy Rebecca Rubin—-the latest member of the American Girl family.
Apparently, her name conjures up bad memories for those who were affected by a series of fires in Oregon.
Dear, sweet Rebecca Rubin—-the new American Girl doll-—is a nine-year-old growing up in New York City in 1914. She is a daughter of Russian-Jewish immigrants and loves to read and play with her friends on the Lower East Side.
Rebecca J. Rubin, however, is a real-life arsonist, who was found guilty of setting a string of fires in Oregon over the last decade. Rubin’s notorious habit of destroying other people’s property has earned her a spot on the FBI’s Most Wanted List. According to officials, Rubin is considered armed, dangerous, and is nothing but trouble.
So how did a cute, culturally sensitive, and educational (albeit expensive) doll wind up sharing the same name as a noted criminal?
American Girl executives claim they registered the name, Rebecca Rubin in 2004, two years before Rebecca J. Rubin started torching property in the Pacific Northwest. According to American Girl bigwigs, Rebecca was one of the most popular names for Jewish girls in 1905—-the year the doll would have been born.
“When researching last names, Rubin was on a list of a handful of other names that would have been appropriate for a Russian-Jewish family but, honestly, Rubin rose to the top because we liked the alliteration and knew that girls could easily pronounce it,” explained American Girl execs.
Mattel, the parent company of American Girl dolls, is downplaying the controversy saying that parents shouldn’t let the doll’s name influence their purchase.
“We feel confident that people will clearly see this as nothing more than what it is – an unrelated coincidence,” says the toy manufacturer.
Interestingly, while Mattel and American Girl spokespeople try to sweep the name controversy under the rug, folks at the FBI are hoping that the media coverage will help them find the real Rebecca Rubin.
What do you make of the doll brouhaha? Do you care that the doll bears the same name as a wanted criminal?
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