A disturbing new toy and social media trend is currently sparking global outrage. This latest controversy centers on the “Natasha” doll which is an elastic, rubbery toy originally marketed for “stress relief.”
While manufacturers offer the doll in multiple skin tones, viral videos across Chinese platforms like Xiaohongshu and Douyin reveal a troubling trend… for some reason, users are overwhelmingly selecting the dark-skinned, Black version of the doll to stretch, stomp, smash with hammers, and even boil the doll, claiming it’s just comedy and entertainment.
The backlash began after advocacy groups and members of Hong Kong’s Black community documented the extreme treatment of the toys online. They strongly believe that marketing the physical degradation of a Black child-like figure as a therapeutic outlet normalizes real-world violence. And folks online agree. One person said,
“China is going absolutely wild over the new brown stress doll Natasha. They tear her apart, stomp her to pieces, cut into her, pump her full of water, and even try to make her white with makeup. Don’t think this is coming to the NL market.” Another said, “I was horrified by this Chinese “Natasha doll” trend, where they’re specifically buying the black-skinned version of the doll to make “stress-relieving” content by running it over, punching it, pouring boiling water on it, and much more. This dehumanization of Black bodies disgusts me.”
Folks are now calling on manufacturers to stop producing and selling these dolls immediately. As of right now, it is unclear if they will agree to stop production.