The above photo of a white toddler clutching a black doll has gone viral on the internet....Thanks to her message of racial diversity and inclusion.
According to the 2 year old's mom, Brandi Benner, she and her husband, Nick had told their daughter, Sophia that after a whole month of potty training she could pick out her special prize at Target.
So when mother and child visited a Target store near their South Carolina home, little Sophia knew exactly what she wanted.
Sophia spent 20-minutes looking at all the dolls on the toy aisle......."She kept going back to the doctor doll, because in her mind, she is already a doctor"...Benner said.
"She loves giving checkups, and if you come in the house, she'll tell you that's the first thing you need"
Sophia, who will be 3 in July, was so excited by her choice that she wouldn't let go of her new doll until they reached the register to check out.
At the check out counter, the cashier asked Sophia if she was going to a birthday party. Sophia reportedly gave the woman a blank look, which prompted the woman to point to the doll and asked Sophia if she had picked up the doll for a friend. Sophia's mother then let the cashier know that it was her special prize for being fully potty trained. The confused cashier turned to Sophia and asked "Are you sure this is the doll you want, honey"? And Sophia replied, "Yes, please"
To little Sophia, there was nothing different about her new black baby doll....but the cashier apparently suggested that she picks another doll because her pick didn't look like her...
"We have lots of other dolls that looks like you" the woman said to Sophia's mother. Sophia had a ready answer.....
"She does look like me! She's a doctor; I'm a doctor. She is a pretty girl; I am a pretty girl. See her pretty hair? See her stethoscope?"
Sophia and her doll give other dolls "checkups"
Benner credited the TV cartoon "Doc McStuffins" with teaching Sophia the word "Stethoscope" But she credits Sophia for knowing what is important: The doll's skin tone didn't matter. To Sophia, she and the doll share the same aspirations. Benner was relieved she didn't have to defend her daughter's choice and glad that Sophia wasn't fazed by the cashier's question. "If she was another child, that could have discouraged her" Benner said
Good job sweetheart! You are a beautiful little girl and i know you will make a great medical doctor. Go and succeed darling! And thank you for not judging the doll by the color of her skin.....#NoOneIsBornARacist!!!
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