Victoria Z. Wilson, J.D., Ph.D.
Kids and Gender Stereotypes: Can't We Let Boys Be Girls and Girls Be Boys?
Posted: 06/15/11 02:43 PM ET
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/victoria-z-wilson-jd-phd/kids-gender-stereotypes_b_877730.html (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/victoria-z-wilson-jd-phd/kids-gender-stereotypes_b_877730.html)
Boys are made of snakes and snails and puppy dog tails while girls are made of sugar and spice and everything nice, right?
In this post-female-emancipation era of gender equality, we as parents still firmly hold on to the outdated gender stereotypes of sweet, pink-tutu-clad girls and tough, dinosaur- and gun-loving boys. Research shows that schoolteachers continue to reward kids in gender-stereotypical way -- girls for being sweet and compliant, and boys for being outspoken and assertive. No wonder gossip magazines are having such a field day with the tomboy Shiloh, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie's adorable daughter, who insists on wearing her brothers' clothes. The same media that vilifies Shiloh's gender-bending ways extols Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise's ultra-feminine daughter Suri, who took her first steps wearing toddler high-heels and toting designer baby purses that cost more than most mothers' monthly salaries.