Toys don't kill
Retailers are being pushed to stop selling
action figures resembling involving sterotypical criminals.
Just last week, the Sears, Roebuck and
Co. had to pull an advertisement for its "Villain" action figure. Equipped
with a machine gun and a shotgun, the doll is dressed in a ski mask, trench
coat and body armor.
The company decided to pull the action
figure from the catalog after receiving several complaints from parents.
The manufacturer said the figure was designed
more than a year ago. The vice president of 21st Century Toys said he expected
the controversy when the Columbine shootings occurred last April, but he
did not think it was worth stopping production.
Even if it does resemble a couple of morons
who went on a shooting spree or tried to rob a bank, the toy itself is
not going to hurt anyone.
A child's imagination will dictate what
the doll does, how it acts, and how it is perceived. Therefore, the action
figure cannot influence the child.
Besides, this "Villain" figure is no different
than the GI Joe action figures we had when we were youngsters.
It is amazing no one has complained that
some of these figures resemble the white supremacist who shot up the North
Valley Community Center in August.
When children play with action figures,
are they really going to want the bad guy to win?
With the figure labeled "Villain," is anybody
going to mistake this guy for a hero? |
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