Blog 4
I read the article from the
Huffington Post, which talks about bringing up a baby without a gender and if
that is a risky social experiment. I personally believe it is a risky social
experiment because it is not helping the child identify with anything. If the
child is a girl and doesn’t want to play with dolls or Barbie’s, she will let
you know, as parents, as she grows up. It goes for boys as well.
My mom has always told me stories
that when I was younger, she would put a dress on me for church and once church
ended I would immediately take it off because I was ready to go play in the
yard. I have always been close to my older brother and wanted to do everything
he was doing, so if he was playing a sport, I was going to play that sport. I
was also close in age with all of my guy cousins so I would be the only girl
playing football with them on Thanksgiving gatherings. My mom would always try
to put a bow in my air and I would also rip it out within three seconds of it
being on. I just wasn’t as interested in girlie toys or things. I think it
depends on whom you grow up with. Eventually I have grown out of doing
everything boys do since I have become older cause lets be honest that would be
quite weird if I was still caught up in that. When I was younger though, it
wasn’t an issue. My mom let me do what I was interested in playing with and I
enjoyed hanging out with boys because they were always playing sports and that’s
what I wanted to do.
Personally, parents shouldn’t force
their child one way or another, but they also should encourage their child to
identify somehow. “What parents can
do is guide their children towards peers they think will do a good job helping
their kids craft their own identity” (Koplewicz, 2011). Initially when
the child is a baby, dress them up and give them toys that go with them being a
girl or boy. Once they grow and can start to distinguish what they want to play
with and how they want to dress, they will be certainly noticed and
established.
Molly,
ReplyDeleteYour respond to raising children in a genderless environment is spot on! I think it is necessary for parents to let their children find themselves. Yes, they can start out by dressing their little girl up or throwing their little boy out on the field, but in the end they will make their own decisions and find out what they like.
Great job!
Great job on the post and I totally agree with you. Children grow up being who they want to be and the parents are there to guide them along, not force them either way.
ReplyDelete