Let's Stop Talking About Pink
Seriously. I don't want to talk about the colour pink anymore. I have a lot of politically-aware friends, and for this I give thanks, but I'm sick of hearing either of these messages:
a) Ugh, my little girl just wants to wear pink!
b) My little girl loves to wear pink, but I have nothing to do with it, it just happened that way!
In my mind I am thinking:
a) There's nothing wrong with pink! Femininity is nothing to be ashamed of.
b) Must you insinuate that pink is somehow "natural" for girls?
But mostly,
c) Please don't talk about this in front of children. By obsessing about the colour pink, we are giving them the impression that gender coding is really, really important to us. One day I will have the gender talk with my kids, but until then, I'd rather not make a big deal about it.
a) Ugh, my little girl just wants to wear pink!
b) My little girl loves to wear pink, but I have nothing to do with it, it just happened that way!
In my mind I am thinking:
a) There's nothing wrong with pink! Femininity is nothing to be ashamed of.
b) Must you insinuate that pink is somehow "natural" for girls?
But mostly,
c) Please don't talk about this in front of children. By obsessing about the colour pink, we are giving them the impression that gender coding is really, really important to us. One day I will have the gender talk with my kids, but until then, I'd rather not make a big deal about it.