Back on November 25th, I ran this post BOYCOTT MATTEL'S BABY DOLL TALKING DAWAH: "ISLAM IS THE LIGHT".
There is a movement afoot!
We're writing to ask for your help with a local citizen's campaign this December. Our goal is to convince stores to stop selling a Mattel talking doll that says "Islam is the light," a way of inviting someone to join Islam - also know as "Da'wa." We have started this campaign in Virginia and Maryland, and we need your help to take it nationwide.
The controversial toy is called the "Little Mommy Real Loving Baby Cuddle & Coo" doll, manufactured by Mattel-Fisher Price. We've put up a website to provide resources for parents to download an information packet to give to store managers. As parents, we've already started asking store managers to remove the dolls from the store shelves, or to put labels on the dolls stating "Notice: this doll says 'Islam is the light,' an invitation to your child to join Islam."
THE "ISLAM IS THE LIGHT" DOLL IS STILL ON THE SHELVES
You may have heard about this controversy in the media. It received a lot of print and TV media attention in October and earlier in November. Yet - hard as it is to believe - most stores are still carrying the doll on their shelves for the holiday shopping season. The doll has no warning label letting parents know that it clearly says "Islam is the light." In fact, we found one store in Virginia where the dolls had the audio disabled AND the front packaging panel (where the name is displayed) ripped off, which made it harder for parents to know that this was the controversial doll. A few newer dolls are being distributed without the sound file, but most still say "Islam is the light."
Bottom line - parents are still buying the doll RIGHT NOW, taking it home, and may not realize what the doll says until Christmas morning when their child unwraps the package and the doll tells her that "Islam is the light."
MATTEL DENIES EVERYTHING
You'd think Mattel would have recalled the doll after parents complained, after some retailers pulled it in response to parent complaints, and after about twenty Youtube videos went up spontaneously from parents and local TV news stations showing that the doll was really saying "Islam is the light." But no. Mattel denies everything.
Mattel has flatly denied that the doll audio files say "Islam is the light," and has stated that parents are hearing the phrase "Islam is the light" because of "power of suggestion." Mattel even put up their "version" of the doll's audio file on their investors and media webpage, although an actual recording of the doll's audio appears to be VERY different (see the "audio research" link at the link label the link.
JOIN OUR CAMPAIGN TO NOTIFY STORE MANAGERS AND PARENTS
We decided enough is enough - store managers need to get the doll off the shelves, or at least label the packaging for each doll so parents know what they are buying their kids for Christmas. We've sent a formal complaint to the Federal Trade Commission, and we've put together information packets you can take to store managers to inform them about the doll (including a sheet of 30 labels they can put on the doll packaging). At their website, we have created a "case" reporting system for each store: just email us basic info about the store you visited and the store manager's response, and we'll put it up so everyone can track the progress in that case. You can see how we've started to do this at the "Cases" link at their website
If you can visit just one store - just one - you can make a difference.
This campaign is also a way to educate our communities about the threat of the Islamic legal and political doctrine of Shariah. Shariah is particularly discriminatory and violent towards Muslim and non-Muslim girls and women. This unadvertised use of a doll - without any notice to parents in the doll's packaging - to advocate Islam to children is particularly offensive and inappropriate, given the very real risks to girls under Shariah.
Please visit the campaign website.
The Marines have a good saying: "We do well that which we know will be inspected." We need to let store managers know that parents across America, this holiday season, are inspecting them for their responsiveness to community concerns about the "Islam is the Light" doll.
