Anger Inducing "Gender Specific" Clothes - Is it just me?
Feb 18, 2015 21:06:04 GMT -5
Post by amshark on Feb 18, 2015 21:06:04 GMT -5
I've always been a little annoyed by the gender categories assigned to baby clothing, and I've never been a fan of the over-the-top pink frilly princess outfits, or the perfectly neutral outfits, ruined by having the word "boy" or "brother" stamped on them. Some of it's just personal preference - to each his own. And I'm not totally against gender specific clothing. I expect I'll have some outfits in pink for my girl and blue for my boy, and they'll be cute, and I won't mind them at all.
But, what I really can't stand is the way that sites like Babies 'r Us, and I suppose the manufacturers that they stock decide to categorize what is a boys item, what is a girls item, and what is neutral. It took me a while to catch on that a lot of the items that I would consider neutral are hidden under the boy category.
Today, I saw a collection of onesies that really summed it all up for me. There is a set of career based bodysuits on the baby boy clothing pages. It includes the usual offenders: firefighters (*I* was a firefighter - not exclusive to boys), police officers, construction worker, etc.... and then there was, and I shit you not, the "Dr. Baby (link)."
I rubbed my eyes, refreshed the page, re-read the description, but there it was "Koala Baby Boys' 2 Piece Light Blue Doctor Short Sleeve Bodysuit and Hat Layette Set."
I went to the girls pages to see if it was posted twice, and there was my answer. Instead of a collection of career related onesies, there was a single selection, "Little Nurse (link)."
I audibly gasped, and said, "Oh no, they didn't!" But yes, yes they did.
I sent a question to BRU asking why I couldn't find the Dr. Baby item in the girls or even the neutral category. I'm sure my reward will be endless spam from BRU for submitting a question with my email address attached. *Sigh*
Please note: I am in no way saying that women shouldn't be nurses. My mother is a nurse, I think it's a noble profession. But, I'd like to think it's not the "only" option available to females. The ONLY one there! How about a little lab coat? How about a soccer player? Why is the lifeguard outfit only on the boys side?
It's not just me, right? This is kind of, what's the word, offensive, no?
**** eta - to make the hyper links more visible ****
But, what I really can't stand is the way that sites like Babies 'r Us, and I suppose the manufacturers that they stock decide to categorize what is a boys item, what is a girls item, and what is neutral. It took me a while to catch on that a lot of the items that I would consider neutral are hidden under the boy category.
Today, I saw a collection of onesies that really summed it all up for me. There is a set of career based bodysuits on the baby boy clothing pages. It includes the usual offenders: firefighters (*I* was a firefighter - not exclusive to boys), police officers, construction worker, etc.... and then there was, and I shit you not, the "Dr. Baby (link)."
I rubbed my eyes, refreshed the page, re-read the description, but there it was "Koala Baby Boys' 2 Piece Light Blue Doctor Short Sleeve Bodysuit and Hat Layette Set."
I went to the girls pages to see if it was posted twice, and there was my answer. Instead of a collection of career related onesies, there was a single selection, "Little Nurse (link)."
I audibly gasped, and said, "Oh no, they didn't!" But yes, yes they did.
I sent a question to BRU asking why I couldn't find the Dr. Baby item in the girls or even the neutral category. I'm sure my reward will be endless spam from BRU for submitting a question with my email address attached. *Sigh*
Please note: I am in no way saying that women shouldn't be nurses. My mother is a nurse, I think it's a noble profession. But, I'd like to think it's not the "only" option available to females. The ONLY one there! How about a little lab coat? How about a soccer player? Why is the lifeguard outfit only on the boys side?
It's not just me, right? This is kind of, what's the word, offensive, no?
**** eta - to make the hyper links more visible ****