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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

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Original poster

'Princess on Board' and 'Child on board'

66 replies

Ormirian · 18/03/2011 10:32

Seen this morning on rear window of car parked outside school. Two stickers with Disney characters on. One pink and festooned with various princess-types. The other blue with Buzz Lightyear and the like.

The pink one said 'Princess on board'.

The blue on said 'Child on board'

So assuming that the blue one was for a boy, why does the girl get to be a princess and the boy merely a 'child'. Is that because the girl is more precious or is it because they couldn't bring themselves to call the boy a 'prince' or similar because it's not 'manly' enough? Or is a 'girl' not good enough unless you promote her to something better?

Just wondering what you think.

OP posts:

StewieGriffinsMom · 18/03/2011 11:17

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Ormirian · 18/03/2011 11:15

Oh good lord Not it's not a major issue. It's not up there with female circumcision or forced prostitution or unequal pay but it's something that is worthy of consideration. Because it's little things like that that add up to the way we think of men and women and the way we like to box them up.

OP posts:

AyeRobot · 18/03/2011 11:12

Are we doing this feminism thing wrong again?

Sarsaparilllla · 18/03/2011 11:07

oh look they have a child in their car I would have run into them but now I won't !!

That's exactly what I think when I see 'baby/child on board' type notices, what's the point of them??

They're just stupid, what difference does it make that they've got a kid in the car, I won't drive any different and nor will anyone else

Why do people feel the need to announce it?

bonkers20 · 18/03/2011 11:04

As long as the parents do not treat their daughter as a more prized princess than their mere child of a son then I wouldn't give a hoot.

I don't think Disney are really going to embrace feminism are they so it's not really worth worrying about.

GwendolineMaryLacey · 18/03/2011 11:02

They probably looked at them in the shop and thought, hmm, Kylie would love the tinkerbell one and Jason would love Buzz. I bet they didn't even read the words.

exoticfruits · 18/03/2011 11:02

I hate them-but I did see one yesterday that said 'sensational mum on board' and that made me

sakura · 18/03/2011 11:00

nobody said it was a Major Feminist Issue.

sakura · 18/03/2011 10:59

ooh, I've got an idea lets talk about how there is no need for feminism, or that feminists see shit that's not there, or that they're too sensitive, or they need to get a life, or a sense of humour or (fill in the blank)

mrsravelstein · 18/03/2011 10:58

if it was the law that on bearing a female child you had to display a princess on board sign in your car, that would be sexist. i honestly cannot see how choosing to have one can be interpreted as a major feminist issue.

mrsravelstein · 18/03/2011 10:56

presumably they are all repressed by the patriarchy

mrsravelstein · 18/03/2011 10:55

so now there are no women working in retail??

Original poster

Ormirian · 18/03/2011 10:55

Yes, that is one interpretation shatner. Which I also pointd out in my OP.

OP posts:

sakura · 18/03/2011 10:54

mrsravelstein, "men in the boardroom" is a figure of speech I trot out now and again to show how much men run the show when it comes to what ends up in the shops, and how little say women have, which is why the world looks like it does, and why there are so many sexist products out there.

ShatnersBassoon · 18/03/2011 10:53

I don't get it though. Isn't a princess more exciting and prized than a regular child? I would say the boy gets the raw deal in this situation, not that any child would give a second thought about the tacky gewgaw adorning their side of the car.

nenevomito · 18/03/2011 10:52

I get what you are saying. Why not "Hero on Board" or something similar.

I'm not keen at all on the whole "princess" thing for girls as the princesses in fairy tales are generally wet behind the ears and no good until a man comes and rescues them. However if it was Princess for girls and Hero for boys, based on the Disney characters, they would still be naff, but not quite so weird.

Maybe its just me but it does seem like when they have two toys. A normal/natural coloured one for boys and the exact same thing in shades of pink for girls.

Maybe I'm overanalysing as well. Meh.

mrsravelstein · 18/03/2011 10:52

i doubt very much that men in a boardroom thought up a princess on board sticker, it's not the kind of thing company directors generally get involved with.

ElephantsAndMiasmas · 18/03/2011 10:51

Erm, on a practical level it could be that the boy was older, so they bought the "child on board" one for him, then they bought/someone gave them (and surely this is exactly the kind of shite that well-meaning relatives give you) the "princess of board" one when they had their DD. So in that sense it maybe wasn't a conscious decision to label the children so differently.

What I find weird is that all little girls are "princesses" when being a princess is such a wet thing to be, in general (although perhaps if more could emulate Khutulun - scroll down - that would be great).

On a slightly related note, I don't know whether it's just a south west thing, but old people where I come from sometimes use the word "child" to mean girl specifically. As in, when someone has a baby, "is it a boy or a cheeld?". So, really Orm, those parents are wrong :o

Original poster

Ormirian · 18/03/2011 10:50

'repressing' no. Feeding into unhealthy and restrictive pigeon-holing of women, yes.

OP posts:

sakura · 18/03/2011 10:49

I think the men who sat around the boardroom and thunked this up have very little understanding of female oppression, or maybe they do. Maybe they're sexist shits

StewieGriffinsMom · 18/03/2011 10:49

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

Ormirian · 18/03/2011 10:49

"oh look they have a child in their car I would have run into them but now I won't !!"

yes I am always looking for cars I can kill myself driving into! It's only the presence of this wanky stickers that has saved me so far.

OP posts:

mrsravelstein · 18/03/2011 10:48

Do you genuinely think that all the women who buy 'princess on board' stickers are repressing their daughers and/or other women?

sakura · 18/03/2011 10:47

mrsravelstein, there has never been a point in history were women haven't been elevated onto pedastols. Being treated as human beings, though? now that's a different kettle of fish.

domesticungoddess · 18/03/2011 10:47

I thought people just put them on their cars to prove they had sex at least once. It surely doesn't stop accidents-oh look they have a child in their car I would have run into them but now I won't !!

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