To feel less than thrilled about pink mega bloks

[TeacupTempest]

that MIL has bought for DD 1st birthday?

I love my MIL. She is a star.
I also realise that many girls love pink.


I had just hoped to avoid the pinkification of my baby for a bit longer.

Surely normal mega bloks are gender less?

[MrsCantSayAnything]

I have never even looked at PinkStinks as the title always annoyed me. It's too negative.

I have formed my own opinions.

[tethersend]

That was to your previous post- I agree that it is absurd to have boys'/girls' sections.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Damn it is a big influence but it is not the biggest. Not by a long shot.

[DamnBamboo]

I can't even begin to imagine making as much of a fuss of this as you are.

Just buy a range of toys, from all different types of role play and colours.

Lobby the retailers if you have such a problem with it, but it can only become a problem if the parent lets it.

You want a pink hoover? Sure, why not. Would you also like a bug hunting kit or a dinosaur excavation kit too?

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Oh Bamboo you're being too limp about it. But whatever floats your pink boat.

[DamnBamboo]

I think parents can be a big influence, but it runs deeper than just the colour and type of toy.

[tethersend]

The zeitgeist seems to be to encourage girls to be 'tomboys' in order to prove that they are somehow more worthy than a girl who enjoys pink sparkles and plaiting hair.

My point is that many activities -and colours- have low status because they have been associated with girls. Eschewing them all over again in favour of activities which which have been associated with boys reinforces the divide and compounds the problem.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

What do you mean "runs deeper"??? THAT'S too vague again! Deeper than what???

[TheCraicDealer]

And let's not forget that the "consumer" in this case is not the child, but the parent or another adult. If you're shopping for a gift, you may find yourself gravitating towards the beacon of pink or camo-green/blue/silver in order to get some ideas. This goes way beyond how a toyshop is laid out, it's how most of us have been socialised.

If a girl wants to play exclusively with pink kitchen sets and dolls, let her crack on. So long as she's told that when she's a big girl she can do whatever-the-fuck she wants.

[DamnBamboo]

Mrs

I can only comment based on my experiences, my sons (thus far, crosses fingers) are well grounded who make no real gender discrimination based on colour or activity, or otherwise.

I work hard at this.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

No Tethers...no. Having a range of toys with no special colour is not going to cast negative aspersions on women.

[Superene]

Pink was a colour generally associated with boys until the 1920s, wikipedia it if you don't believe me.
My two sons have pink mega blocks and they have never questioned it.
Yes there is a lot of pink stuff for girls, but if you don't like it, don't buy it.

[DamnBamboo]

It's more than just about colour or a fecking iron?

They have access to all the same types of toys that boys do, and if they want to play with them, then that's down to the parents to encourage.

As long as she is not made to feel inferior, or think that she can only do certain things in life then that's what counts.

[tethersend]

MrsCant, that is not what I'm saying. I am talking about attitudes towards the genderisation of toys, not specifically de-genderising the toys themselves.

[curiousgeorgie]

There's nothing wrong with pink blocks.

My DD plays with pink blocks, a pink little tykes car, a pink version of Alfie bear, you name it, she has it in pink.

But she also has a garage and it's BLUE

It's really not a big deal.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Oh ffs curious join in by all means but the thread has moved on a lot. It's not about what your DD has.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Tethers I know. And I am talking about de-genderising the toys being the answer.

[tethersend]

The iron is a good example- the only reason we see ironing as a negative activity is because of its low status. Low status which is due to it being done almost exclusively by women over the past few hundred years.

Do we feel the same about building a house?

[DamnBamboo]

Anyway Mrs nice to 'chat'

I'm off to bed now.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Goodnight Bamboo

[TheCraicDealer]

Ignore Mrs, Curious- I'm sure she didn't mean to be so rude.

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Tethers...which is why I suggest making toy irons in ALL colours and having ONE aisle of toys in which toy irons feature alongside cars, dolls, workbenches, horses....etc

[MrsCantSayAnything]

Yes I did craic* because imo it's rude to read the thread opener and not bother with the rest of the input.

[tethersend]

I think de-genderising the toys is one of the answers- it would certainly have an impact. But I worry that the effect would be undone by well-meaning parents steering their DDs away from play which they see as not as worthy due to their own entrenched negative connotations with anything traditionally defined as 'female'

[BastardSpiders]

MrsCant pulling people up on being rude, by erm being rude....

Oh the sheer irony of it.