American Girl Debuts Mexican American Doll + Ellen Ochoa Barbie Released

Latina power is in full force with not one but two Latina dolls making their debut this year. The toy brand, Mattel, debuted the American Girl doll Raquel Reyes and announced she’s the Girl of the Year spotlighting her Mexican American heritage and her ties to one of the original historical American Girl dolls. Raquel is a direct descendant of Samantha Parkington and her dad is Mexican American. The brand also honored another Mexican American this year with the Ellen Ochoa Inspiring Women Barbie Doll spotlighting the first Latina to go to space. Both dolls were revealed in time for the start of Latinx Heritage Month on Sept. 15 bringing much-needed Latina representation with Raquel joining Josefina Montoya as the only two Latina American Girl Dolls. Raquel is described as a 10-year-old living in Kansas City, Missouri where her parents run a paleta shop. Her journal and novel were written by award-winning author Angela Cervantes who is also half Mexican American and lives in Kansas City and worked with experts including Dr. Diana Leon-Boys, a scholar of Latina girlhood to ensure authenticity.

“It was an absolute joy to create Raquel Reyes as the American Girl 2026 Girl of the Year,” Cervantes said in a press release. “From the start, I was a huge fan of Samantha Parkington, and having the chance to write her great-great-granddaughter’s story was a true honor. What makes Raquel especially special to me is that she’s from my home, Kansas City, and that she carries Samantha’s legacy forward while showing that being true to yourself and staying connected to your family and roots is a source of strength.”

The 18-inch Raquel doll has light brown eyes and brown hair styled in a half-updo with a bow hair tie. The doll comes in a gingham top and skirt, platform shoes with bow details, and a bow cuff bracelet in tribute to Samantha’s signature plaid style. The doll comes with a wide selection of accessories including a dark purple beach party dress with embroidered flowers honoring her Mexican heritage.

To celebrate her release, American Girl is donating books to Save the Children which will help provide resources and inspiration to children in underserved communities in rural America, according to the press release.

The Ellen Ochoa Barbie also includes a charitable element with the Barbie Dream Gap Project donating to the Latinas in STEM Foundation, according to a press release. Ochoa remains one of the most prominent Latinas in STEM with four shuttle missions within a nine-year span and almost 1,000 hours in orbit. The accomplished astronaut first made history when she went to space on the nine-day STS-56 mission aboard the space shuttle Discovery in 1993 after earning her doctorate in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1985 and joining NASA as a research engineer. She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor from the U.S. government, in 2024 for her advancements in STEM as one of NASA’s most decorated astronauts.

The Barbie comes in an authentic orange space suit with insignia patches resembling those from real space missions along with a helmet, gloves, and boots reminiscent of the uniform she wore during her first missions to space.

“Before I became the first Hispanic woman in space, my journey in STEM was fueled by a deep curiosity
and a desire to explore the unknown. That’s why being honored by Barbie—a brand that inspires
imagination and possibility—means so much to me. It’s important to me to empower young people to
bring their curiosity and personal viewpoint into whatever dreams they choose to pursue – just as I’ve
aimed to do throughout my career. This partnership with Barbie feels like an exciting next step in that
mission,” Ochoa said in a press release.

The Ellen Ochoa Barbie is available for preorder for $38 shipping on or before Oct. 31. The Raquel Reyes American Girl Doll is available now for $135.