As the writer said, gender stereotypes are alive and kicking. I heard a 40-year-old woman tell her nephew recently that the sparkly decal tattoo was girly. I inwardly hit the ceiling. The nephew's mom, a cleric, smiled and said...nothing.
Interestingly, where most gender-based taboos have been broken, a strong one still remains: Naming. Women can be Prime Ministers and police officers, boys can be nurses and even midwives, but it's amazing how nearly everyone, when choosing their children's names, revert right back to Pink and Blue World.
I know strident feminists who live gender equality in every area of their lives, yet who could not wrap their heads around naming a girl a "boys' name"; they instead go for unmistakably feminine names like Ariella or Aviva. It never occurs to them to slice off that "a" at the end.
It kills me that naming is that last stronghold of gender stereotype when it's the easiest thing in the world to change.
As the writer said, gender stereotypes are alive and kicking. I heard a 40-year-old woman tell her nephew recently that the sparkly decal tattoo was girly. I inwardly hit the ceiling. The nephew's mom, a cleric, smiled and said...nothing.
Interestingly, where most gender-based taboos have been broken, a strong one still remains: Naming. Women can be Prime Ministers and police officers, boys can be nurses and even midwives, but it's amazing how nearly everyone, when choosing their children's names, revert right back to Pink and Blue World.
I know strident feminists who live gender equality in every area of their lives, yet who could not wrap their heads around naming a girl a "boys' name"; they instead go for unmistakably feminine names like Ariella or Aviva. It never occurs to them to slice off that "a" at the end.
It kills me that naming is that last stronghold of gender stereotype when it's the easiest thing in the world to change.