FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Black Doll Affair® Founder and Barbie® Consultant Releases the ME™ Doll,

a Regal Human Family Heirloom Created to Dismantle Racism

by Restoring the Truth of Our Shared Origin.

Atlanta, GA – Dana “Mama Doll” Hill, Founder of The Black Doll Affair® (BDA), the philanthropic empowerment organization she created in 2007 as a solution to the Doll Test, in which children identified the Black doll as bad, ugly, and least preferred, and known for elevating the self-esteem experience of Black girlhood and womanhood, announces the release of the ME Doll, a first-of-its-kind Educational Heirloom™, inspired by Mitochondrial Eve (ME), the African woman from whom all living humans trace their maternal lineage.

Created as a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) artifact, the ME Doll is a 21st-century artistic innovation designed to teach the origins of humanity. It is Mama Doll’s creative vision of Mitochondrial Eve, the ancestral gene made visible and brought to life as a doll. The genetic symbol of the single maternal line carried within us all, it invites powerful conversation about the gene that connects the human family. Offered as an educational tool and a collectible work of art, the ME Doll honors origin, ancestry, and heritage while serving as a cultural mirror of our shared beginnings. Its ultimate purpose reaches beyond education or play; it exists to challenge division and dismantle racism in how we understand identity itself. Conceived by Hill and co-designed with her sister, Christy, the ME Doll is a human family heirloom with a mission, continuing The Black Doll Affair’s two-decade legacy of empowerment, storytelling, and truth.

Hill, an Association for the Study of African American Life & History “Living Legacy” Award nominee, has quietly shaped some of the most important conversations in the doll industry over the last two decades. Hill advised Mattel to put Barbie in an Afro, which ultimately led to Barbie Fashionista® Doll #59, an industry-defining moment and a major shift in representation. In 2020, her advocacy once again altered the cultural landscape when Mattel asked Hill what should come next for Barbie. In her role as a Barbie consultant, Hill spoke directly to the impact of George Floyd’s murder and asserted that the time had come for Barbie to openly address racism. This advocacy led to the viral video “Barbie & Nikki Discuss Racism,” a moment that took the world by storm and became front-page news across national newspapers and major broadcast outlets. Today, that same courage and clarity find their fullest expression in the ME Doll.

Rooted in the truth of Mitochondrial Eve, the African mother of all humanity, the ME Doll arrives at a moment when history, identity, and empathy are under threat. It asks us to see “ME” not as difference, but as shared origin; not as division, but as connection. In reminding us that we are more alike than we are different, Hill positions the ME Doll as both mirror and message, inviting love, tolerance, and deeper understanding of what it truly means to be human.

Mitochondrial Eve (ME), the most recent matrilineal ancestor of all living humans, is estimated to have lived in Africa approximately 100,000 to 200,000 years ago. Not the only woman alive at the time, she is the only one whose mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) line persisted unbroken to the present day and has been passed down from mother to child. To deepen this remembrance, the doll is presented as a doll head, an artistic homage to Omo I, the ancient Homo sapiens cranial remains (233,000 years old) discovered in Ethiopian volcanic ash. While Mitochondrial Eve represents shared maternal DNA, Omo I stands as a physical echo of early humanity, together grounding the ME Doll at the intersection of science, empowerment, art, and culture.

Limited Edition Educational Heirloom™

Each ME Doll is part of a first-run limited edition of 500, individually numbered, handmade, and personally signed by Mama Doll. Every doll is painted in a rich dark-chocolate finish, affirming origin and beauty.

More Than a Doll, A Cultural Statement

“If you think of the ME Doll as a doll like Barbie, you are not looking at her correctly. ME is more than a doll. She is a conversational keepsake and an educational experience for youth, adults, classrooms, and family settings. The world does not need another doll maker attempting to compete with Barbie. I am not a doll designer. I embarked on this journey in August of 2025, by asking God to design a doll with me,” says Hill.

“My sister Christy, a home designer, brought her design expertise to the project, complementing and completing the vision. It was then that I understood I was being called to create something special for humanity. As we celebrated The Black Doll Affair’s 18th anniversary at a time when so much of our history is being erased, the ME Doll emerged as an evolution of the Doll Tests. Imagine if children were taught from the moment they could speak that all of humanity comes from an African woman. Would racism exist? No. Because racism is not a truth, it is a construct. And once the truth of our shared origin is restored, the construct dissolves,” Hill said.

The ME Doll is a reminder of who we are, where we come from, and the sacred legacy we carry forward. Now that the first 500 are available, it is a simple ask, place one of these heirlooms in a classroom, child’s bedroom, coffee table, desk, or vanity, reminding everyone that Africa is the mother of all humanity.

For photos, videos, product details, and to purchase a first-run limited-edition ME Doll, visit blackdollaffair.com. Follow: #iamMEiam

About The Black Doll Affair®

Recipient of President Barack Obama’s Volunteer Service Award, The Black Doll Affair® was founded by Dana “Mama Doll” Hill and is a nationally recognized self-esteem and cultural arts movement whose members are referred to as “The Black Dolls.” Dedicated to empowering Black girls, the organization maintains a long-standing relationship with Mattel’s Barbie brand and is headquartered in Atlanta.

Former Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue declared “The Black Doll Affair Day” in Atlanta in recognition of the organization’s community impact. For over 20 years, The Black Doll Affair® has worked to affirm identity, restore history, and elevate self-worth through its “Be a Doll, Give a Doll” programming, becoming the largest consumer group of Black Barbie and earning Congressional recognition from the late Congressman John Lewis.

About Dana Hill

Having worked with brands and icons including Barbie, Ronald McDonald, Misty Copeland and Dan Marino, Dana Hill is a publicist, broadcaster, community activist, and former model who founded The Black Doll Affair in 2007 after witnessing the powerful Doll Test.

Hill’s commitment to service and cultural advocacy has earned widespread recognition. Her work in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Atlanta neighborhood has been honored by members of the King family and affiliated institutions. She is also a Living Legacy Award nominee of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), founded by Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the father of Black History Month.

Through The Black Doll Affair, Dana Hill continues to inspire change, promote self-esteem, and build bridges across communities nationwide.