Hamilton’s Queen Cee is changing the world one doll at a time
Queen Cee launching line with skin tone range so children can have a toy that looks like them
If you walk into a big-name toy store looking for a doll with black skin, you won’t easily find one.
Queen Cee — the Hamilton singer, community activist, and mom of five — wants to change that.
Cee, otherwise known as Charmaine Robinson, has created a line of dolls with different skin tones, hair colours and textures in the hopes that any child can find a doll that looks like them.
Cee created three prototypes — called “Herstory Dolls” — and launched a crowdfunding campaign in the hopes of producing them for sale.
She says there are toy companies that create dolls with black skin, but for various reasons those dolls are not always available in stores. For kids, that lack of representation “translates to ‘not important, not cared for, not wanted, not needed, not special enough,’” Cee writes on her crowdfunding page.
“Through my research and speaking with some of these toy companies, I found that — especially when it comes to black dolls — they’re not stocked in stores. They’re not even stocked in the warehouse,” she said in her east Mountain home. “They will ship them upon the store wanting them. If the store doesn’t order them, or feel there’s a need for them, they don’t get shelved.”
Not only are black dolls hard to find, Cee says, but they’re often produced in just one skin tone.
“You could really impact a lot of children by letting them see (that) the things they play with and imagine with every day can look like classmates they have, or people in their family — as opposed to having one black doll.”
Each of her three 18-inch prototypes has a different skin tone and hair colour, and if the company takes off, she hopes to add more.
“As much as people can say ‘it’s just a doll,’ everything a child sees makes up their ideologies — how they see the world and how they perceive things,” she said. “So when things are unbalanced, how do they create their own decisions about what they find beautiful? Or what’s accepted?”
The dolls were inspired by Cee’s 9year-old daughter Amora Sanaa (pronounced Sah-neh), whom Cee calls her “little CEO.”
About five years ago, Cee started customizing dolls for Amora Sanaa, stripping and repainting their faces, sewing new clothes and adding new hair.
Cee began to get requests from other parents to make dolls that looked like their own children.
And about two years ago, she began to do research on making her own line of dolls.
Cee has overseen every element of the dolls’ production, from the original clay model to the final copper mould. Her 16-year-old son, Origin, helped bring her vision to life with sketches.
“I wanted her to have features that more resembled African features — a broader, rounder nose and lips that were more full,” reads her crowdfunding page.
“I wanted her eyes to be bright and her face to have a pleasant look of joy and wonder” she continues.
After months of research, Cee found an offshore company that was able to produce the dolls exactly as she wanted.
“I figured if I’m going to do this, I’m not going to cut corners,” she said. “I wanted to make sure it was something special, and that any girl or doll-lover who got it felt like they were getting something that a lot of thought was put into.”
One of the most important elements for Cee was creating a doll that had movable joints, allowing children to pose them or stand them up. She’s also offering her customization services to buyers who want to add different hair colours or outfits.
Cee chose not to name the dolls, preferring instead to let children use their imagination.
“It’s beautiful to have options. You’ll be surprised when you give children options — what they will pick, and what they gravitate toward, and what they will do with what they have.”
Cee is hoping to raise $50,000 for her first run of 600 dolls. To contribute, visit igg.me/ at/ her story doll campaign.