Immigration Reform And Wisconsin Farms, New Jackie Nitschke Documentary, Normal Barbie

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• New Line Of Dolls Depicts Average-Sized Women

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  In an effort to provide children with a realistic representation of what women look like, a startup business called Lammily just began selling a doll that has average proportions, stretch marks and acne.

  Guided by measurements from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the so-called “normal Barbie” has the proportions of an average woman, making her shorter and curvier than Mattel’s classic Barbie doll. And whereas Barbie’s accessories include handbags, sunglasses and cell phones, the Lammily doll comes with sticker add-ons like stitches, scars and moles.

  “A lot of people think this is over the top, but the whole point of creating this was trying to just like a typical person,” said Nickolay Lamm, the creator behind the Lammily line of dolls.

  Lamm said he believes it’s time to look seriously at the impact that dolls like Barbie have on children and their idea of what the ideal body looks like. According to the DoSomething.org, 91 percent of women are unhappy with their bodies and diet to try to achieve a more ideal shape.

  Lamm believes there’s a demand for more realism in the aisles of toy stores. He launched a crowdfunding campaign in November and raised $500,000. He said the next step is trying to get the dolls into major retail stores.

  “When I walk down the toy shelves, I get the impression that we should all look like supermodels,” Lamm said. “But maybe if there’s just another realistic alternative — as if the wall would be saying, ‘Yeah, it’s cool to be a supermodel, but it,s also cool just to be a typical person.’”

  He added that when kids first see the dolls, they find their ordinariness extraordinary, and that it’s like nothing they’ve seen before.

  Lamm received some blowback from media outlets saying that his doll doesn’t go far enough. But he refutes that criticism, saying he had to start somewhere and that he hopes to create dolls in the future that are more representative of the entire population.

  “Can a doll save the world? I mean, it’s just a toy. But I feel that it can be a part of helping people feel better about themselves and who they are. It’s not going to fix everything but it’s a good start,” Lamm said.

• Wisconsin Dairy Farmers Seek Further Immigration Reform

  President Barack Obama’s recent executive action on immigration shielded about 4 million unauthorized immigrants from deportation and gave them the opportunity to apply for a three-year working permit, but some Wisconsin farmers say they need further reform.

  “The biggest thing that our members are looking for are extended visas or a longer time that (immigrants) can stay in the country legally, because as dairy farmers we need help 365 days a year,” said Darin Von Ruden, president of the Wisconsin Farmers Union.

  According to a University of Wisconsin-Madison study, about 40 percent of workers in the dairy industry in Wisconsin are immigrants, with an estimated half of those people lacking proper documentation. Immigrants who do seasonal labor are eligible for H-2A visas because their work is temporary. Those worker permits, however, aren’t geared toward dairy farm work that continues year-round.

  “If they have just a six-month visa, after six months the dairy farmer has to find a new employee … If you bring in new people there is always an adjustment period, because not everyone has the same work ethic and the ability to work with animals as the person before them may have,” said Von Ruden.

  He said that it can take up to three weeks to train a new employee to work on a dairy farm.

  Today, dairy farmers who employ immigrants with the proper documentation must continuously look for new employees, and there is little they can do to keep their best employees on the payroll.

  “There’s getting to be more and more of a demand for immigrant help on those farms,” said Von Ruden, “So, if there was a longer time that (immigrants) could be there, there might actually be a stronger demand from the owners of the farms to keep the best employees there.”

  Von Ruden said he doesn’t think that providing longer-term working permits for immigrants on dairy farms would make it more difficult for current Wisconsin residents to find work.

  “There’s a lot of farm jobs that the average Wisconsinite doesn’t want to undertake. Some has to do a little bit with the pay… They can go to work at McDonald’s or Wal-Mart and make just as much money without the job descriptions that dairy farmers have.”

  Van Ruden isn’t currently optimistic about further immigration reform.

  “I don’t think anything is going to happen in this election cycle. It would surprise me,” he said. “But, if we can get Washington to work like the rest of the countryside is working together to get the job done, then we could possibly see some true immigration reform.”

• Wisconsin Farmers Seek More Immigration Reform For Agriculture Workers

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  After President Obama announced executive action to shield millions of unauthorized immigrants from deportation, Wisconsin farmers say they need further reform to give them greater access to agriculture workers who are in the country legally.

• New Documentary Explores Life Of Jackie Nitschke And Her Battle With Alcohol Addiction

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  A new documentary explores the life of Jackie Nitschke, the wife of former Green Bay Packers great Ray Nitschke, her struggle with alcohol addiction, and her road to recovery.

• According to some measures, 91 percent of women are unhappy with their bodies. To help portray realistic versions of what women really look like, Lammily dolls just began selling its so-called “normal Barbie” with average proportions, stretch marks and acne. But will kids be into average-looking dolls?