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Enough with the pink dolls: A video of a little girl dissing the gender stereotyped marketing of pink toys for girls is going viral this Christmas, maybe a hint to parents looking to stock up on princesses this Boxing Day.

Riley, a Newburgh, N.Y., girl who looks about five, blasted princess culture from a toy aisle as her father Dennis Barry filmed on, complaining about big manufacturers trying to "trick girls into buying the pink stuff instead of stuff that boys want to buy."

"Some girls like superheroes, some girls like princesses! Some boys like superheroes, some boys like princesses! So why do all the girls have to buy pink stuff and all the boys have to buy different colour stuff?" Riley demands in the video.

The rant swelled at least one feminist's heart over at Jezebel, while the Daily Mail went ridiculously further, hailing Riley as the next Germaine Greer. YouTube viewers, meanwhile, saw "a future trial attorney" and "a president-in-the-making."

While it's uncertain how much coaching litte Riley got from her camera-wielding father, maybe pint-sized protesters are fair game where their toys are concerned.

Riley's speech comes on the heels of news that Lego, the beloved and once unisex fantasy land of non-gendered building blocks, is hoping to woo more girls with "Lego Friends," a heavily pink line launching next week in the States.

CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp told Businessweek Lego aims to "reach the other 50 per cent of the world's children" with the new line, which features 29 curvier figurines living in "Heartlake City," a pastel-tinted town where local landmarks include "Mia's Puppy House" and "Stephanie's Outdoor Bakery."

The line is one of Lego's most dramatic overhauls, and the result of much research into girls' play styles, starting in 2007, when Lego had designers shadow girls. What did they want? Beauty, a concept that for them included "friendlier colours" - think pink.



Do you buy your daughters pink toys? Why or why not?

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