Imasha Costa: As a little South Asian girl, Barbie was my idol, but she was everything I wasn't

Barbie made me feel like I was not enough in this world because I was not fair-skinned. Because I was not middle class, and because I did not have my perfect stable dream house growing up

Barbie: 'I desperately wanted to become her, to look like her. As I grew older and into my late teens, I would straighten my hair, bleach it to make it lighter and wear foundation that was lighter than my skin.'

The Barbie Doll. She was my idol. She was the toy everyone brought to school, she was what everyone got for their birthdays. She was everyone’s best friend.

I was a young South Asian girl that looked at Barbie and thought, she has got to be the most beautiful doll in the world. She is white, she has blonde hair, she has a stable house to live in, she most likely has a lot of money, and she always has great outfits.