Feminists Wear Pink
If there is one thing the internet is good at, it's finding something to be mad about and then being SUPER mad about it for a short while. The Carnegie Science Center has recently found itself at the center of an Internet Hissy Fit because of this, which instantly struck me as the sort of thing that was like a book with only even-numbered pages. There HAD to be more more to it.
There was. Quite a bit more. So.
In the end, the whole thing will blow over. It might ignite a few conversations about doing more to interest girls in science, and maybe it will even lead to some really great programs, but in the meantime, ZOMG STOP INSULTING MY KID.
Ahem.
Every time one of these "it's so sexist to market sparkles to girls" things comes up, I'm left standing there saying things that I would have never expected to say. While *I* hate sparkles and *I* hate gender norming, the fact of the matter is Alexis popped out as a Disney Princess-loving, glitter-dipped girly girl.
Throughout her life, I have gone out of my way to offer alternatives. We don't need the stupid pink LEGOS! Look at the regular sets! They're cooler! Let's play with cars! They're just as fun as dolls! Superheroes are awesome and they don't wear pink!
It doesn't work.
Alexis has always picked the girly options. She legitimately prefers pink, glitter, dresses ... all of it. All of those things that we keep telling girls they should shun in the name of equality, she likes. No, loves.
So, what the hell is wrong with that?
We're talking about a kid who swoons over Prince Eric, but who refuses to give the time of day to a little boy who said mean things about a friend of hers. She is all in when it comes to being a cheerleader, but she also will school the boys on the basketball court. She wants her glittery pink t-shirts because she says they're cute. So what does it hurt for her to want to be cute?
Nothing. It hurts nothing.
I'm with everyone on the need to demand better for our girls. They deserve better than "shrink and pink" marketing. They deserve equal opportunities. They deserve equal pay when they enter the workforce. But, they shouldn't be ashamed to like what they like.
Feminists can wear pink, too.
($100 says this one decides she doesn't want to be a girly girl. We still have all of the Disney Princess stuff, so you just know she won't want anything to do with it.)
Thursday, October 2, 2014
Reader Comments (3)
I totally agree, but it DID bug me to see that. I have spent the last 10 years in sparkly, princess, girly girlville, and I love it. I have no problem with pink and sparkles and all that. I just hate to see the difference between the boy classes and the girl classes. I get that sometimes marketing things that way is how we get girls interested in science, etc, and I DO believe CSC and their response. But there are SO MANY instances of sexism and underselling our girls in today's society that it is hard not to have the knee-jerk reaction of disgust.
They have been having this argument since I was a kid. I turned 50 this year. The more things change the more they stay the same!
Well said! Yes!