6-yr-old asked toy companies why they didn't make female toy soldiers—the response changed her life
The minds of young children know no bias. For them, everyone is equal, irrespective of their backgrounds, abilities and titles. A 6-year-old girl from Arkansas, Vivian Lord, saw men and women equal until she noticed something unusual, as per THV11. But her reaction was impressive. The little girl was curious about why there were no female soldier toys and asked her mum, Brittany. When she didn’t have a convincing answer, Vivian wrote to several toy companies to ask for a reason. The response she received sparked a phenomenal initiative.
It all began when the family was toy shopping and the 6-year-old was browsing through Green Army Men toys, per Good Morning America. When she couldn’t find girl army figures, she brought it to her parents’ notice. “I’ve been wanting to have girl army men...but there’s no girl army men…so it’s kinda weird,” the little girl noted. Her mum was taken aback by the girl’s iconic thoughts. "Honestly, I had never thought of it,” she remarked. "She wanted us to do a Google search to see if they did in fact exist because if they did, she wanted us to get some," Brittany said. The mom tried to explain to the 6-year-old in the best way possible. “That’s when we kind of talked about it and talked about making a change,” she added.
Vivian decided to pen a letter to toy-making companies to address the issue. As best as she could explain her inconvenience, she wrote, “Why do you not make girl Army men? My friend’s mom is in the Army too (sic).” The observant girl noted that there were pink army soldier toys but they didn’t do justice to female army personnel. “I saw the pink ones but those aren’t girls and people in the army don’t wear pink,” she confidently mentioned. "So please, can you make army girls that look like women (sic)," she requested in her letter which was mailed to multiple toy companies. The girl did receive a response, but only from two companies.
The mom talked to the president of J Lloyd International in Iowa. “He told me plans of female army figures in the future have actually been discussed, they just have to figure out a way to get retailers to support," Brittany recalled. “So often our kids are the ones that teach us and this was one of those moments,” she noted. The thought-provoking letter also prompted a Pennsylvania toy maker to debut the female version of the iconic Green Army Men figurines. Jeff Imel, the president of BMC Toys in Scranton, Pennsylvania, was impressed by Vivian's take on the toys and said, "It was an easy response for me because I agreed with her," reported GMA. He added that it was on his mind already but he did not act on it because of the expensive and lengthy production that would be required for creating a new mold.
Jeff added, "People have been very supportive, enough to make me know that this is a product that people want." Vivian’s 9-year-old brother, Jackson, also supported her. He mentioned that the thought never struck him either but he fully understood where his sibling's stance. “I think she is gonna make girl army soldier an actual toy that grown-ups could learn a lot from. And it’s gonna change other people’s perspective,” the boy said.
Thanks to the girl’s confident question being raised, research was conducted and it was realized that many, like Vivian, hoped to see female army toys someday. It was introduced in the market shortly after and nowadays, we can spot female soldier toys in many shops and stores. Moreover, Vivian’s innocent yet confident thoughts served as a reminder of equality. "I think this is a great example of listening to kids because they see things that we don’t see. Children with fresh eyes can see things the way they’re supposed to be,” Vivian’s mom remarked.