Girls Inc. supports abortion and lesbianism, and opposes abstinence-only sex education programs - positions at odds with the values of many American Girl customers.

(Okay.  Personal disclosure. While the American Girl dolls are the homey opposite of the Barbie-thin ones, it still rattles me to see flocks of ten-year-olds clutching them on the street. Sure, as a girl, I had my stuffed panda, but I never took a doll to lunch as girls do at the American Girl cafe.  I preferred putting together a radio, throwing a baseball or reading a book.  I'm reminded of multi-sport player Babe Didrikson, who responded to a reporter's inquiry if there were anything "she didn't play": Yeah, Babe said, I don't play dolls.)

But this is about big business, and the religious right is determined to control it, as reported by Mike Arran on Talk to Action in Corporate Theocracy . American Girl is actually owned by Mattel, Inc., and the dolls took in $379 million in sales last year.

And, like demands that the term "holidays" be eliminated for "Christmas," described by Michelle Goldberg , this is a media device.  The boycotters are getting the media attention they crave.    

The Pro-Life Action League proudly reported:

League spokeswoman Ann Scheidler spoke to reporters from CNN and CBS News, and several camera crews filmed the protest. Scheidler later appeared live on CNN's Paula Zahn Show for an interview on the protest of American Girl.

That's encouraged religious right groups to join the bash, including The American Family Association, Priests for Life, Operation Rescue, Southern Baptists, Focus on Family and more.

Reported blogger egalia at Tennessee Guerilla Women in November:

The local daily, The Tennessean, has an Op-ed in today's paper, titled: American Girl dolls' link to liberals isn't child's play....

The Op-ed is authored by Kathryn Hooks; the tagline identifies her as the "director of media and public relations for the American Family Association."

Hooks charges that Girls Inc. "supports abortion as a 'woman's freedom of choice, a constitutional right' and 'convenient access to safe, effective methods of contraception.'"

Girls Inc. offends Ms. Hooks further because it offers books on the subject of sexual orientation.

God forbid that our daughters should have birth control and books too!

Girls, Inc. is an outgrowth of Girls Clubs of America, which for 141 years old has offered skills and training to girls across the country.  President Jean Roché responded to the boycotters in a statement:

Recently, our mission to help girls develop their self-esteem and self-reliance has become the target of false, inflammatory statements from people who are pursuing a narrow political agenda.

Girls Incorporated stands on its long positive history. The millions of lives we have touched speak for who we are and our values,

But this is only one element of the boycott crusade to badger large companies with retail consumer bases. Life Decisions International (LDI) released its new boycott list just in time for the big-buying season.  A religious right anti-abortion organization, LDI targets companies that support contraception or make donations to Planned Parenthood.  

According to the LDI press release.

Corporations slated to appear on The Boycott List for the first time include: Altria (Phillip Morris, Nabisco, and Kraft products, Post cereals, etc.), Circuit City (retail electronics outlet), Cost Plus World Market (retail stores), Price Chopper/Mini Chopper (supermarkets/ convenience stores), New World Restaurant Group (Chesapeake Bagel Bakery, Einstein Bros Bagels, Manhattan Bagel, etc.), Nike (apparel/footwear, etc.), & Tommy Hilfiger (apparel, etc.),among others ....

The new Boycott List will include a revised "Dishonorable Mention" section, which identifies charitable groups that are associated with Planned Parenthood and/or its agenda. Among the groups to be named in the section are The American Cancer Society, Camp Fire, The Dr. Phil Foundation, Girls Inc., Girl Scouts, Rotary Clubs, The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, and the YWCA.

Others on recent LDI boycott lists have been:  Walt Disney, Pfizer, J. P. Morgan Chase, Johnson & Johnson, CIGNA, The New York Times, Microsoft, Levi Strauss, Patagonia, and Whole Foods Market.

Do these boycotts have an impact? Yes and no. Alone, probably not. But they're combined with letter-writing, negative media, shareholder resolutions and investment screening, as I discussed on CorpWatch

Companies usually deny that they are responding to the pressure, but Target and General Mills quietly ended corporate donations to Planned Parenthood.  

Emboldened, the religious right only expands its targets. Example A: The American Family Association's most recent effort got Ford Motor Co. to say it would end advertising in gay publications.

Here's an activist thought. Take the LDI boycott list with you as a holiday shopping guide.  If, like me, you don't want a doll, buy an "I Can" wristband for one dollar from American Girl, and seventy percent goes to Girls Inc.  Or just send a buck and letter of support to Girls Inc.  

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