Anyone else find "pink princesses" ubiquity deeply disturbing?

[Annner]

Have a look at this

After years of wondering whether I do read into everything too much, this site is a breath of fresh air.

I knew there'd be a backlash soon. Hooray! I don't put DD in a smidgen of pink if I can possibly help it ...

Oh for goodness sake, another way in which I can be judged by complete strangers

My dd loves pink, this does not automatically mean that she is being taught terrible things in terms of her body image or anything else.

My other dds have hated pink (and all the fairy stuff that goes with it) but have had the same upbringing as pinkdd, they are just as "at risk" of poor image etc as pinkdd because it is their upbringing that governs this not the colour of their clothes FGS.

I would have thought it is perfectly reasonable to follow a childs personal taste and allow them to express themselves and their individuality through their choice of clothes/dressing up things/toys etc. In fact imposing your feelings (ie "my dd will never wear pink because I have attached connotations to it) is worse for them than a pair of fairy wings.

God I hate people over analysing, why oh why do you feel the need?

I dress my baby DD in loads of pink. Why? Because it's cheap and widely available and I haven't got the time to lobby Asda to produce more blue girl's clothes.

Same with my boy, actually. I don't particularly like the sea of blue clothes with strange construction industry/surf dude/pirate pictures emblazoned all over them, but hey ho.

But it's not just about pink canute is it? Pink is just a useful peg to hang all the girly fluffy crap that is associated with marketing for girls.

Just out of interest how many of you can name more than a handful of positive male role models for little boys, who show them how to wide the options are for being a great man? I mean ones that boys at the "pink" stage can identify with?

This smacks of being another femenist torch that gets so many reasonable femenists a bad name.

What is so wrong with saying "Let?s educate, inspire and motivate our children" why does it have to be all about the girls?

here here Cahute.

There is nothgin wrong with a little girls wearing pink, the problem, as far as I'm conserned, is the lack of choice out there for boysd and girls.

Orm, so what if fluffy stuff is aimed at girls? There is nothing stopping a parent buying a nice pink kettle for their son or a big blue digger for their daughter.

Parents have control of these things, throwing up your hands and saying "my daughters low self esteem is because the maufacturers made me buy pink stuff when she was little" is a major cop out.

Positive Role Models?

What are they then? My DS's role models, both male and female, are family members and close adult friends, not anyone else.

"I would have thought it is perfectly reasonable to follow a childs personal taste"

Of course, Canute ? but it's not really a child's personal taste, is it, because she's being heavily influenced from most quarters ? her peers and shops, mainly ? to choose pink above any other colour.

It's just so damn boring to go into Asda and see nothing but a sea of pink clothes waving back at you, and I seriously resent the lack of choice, and assumption that that's what we all want to dress our DDs in.

Wasn't like that in my day. I was kept in a steady stream of putrid brown clothes in the 70s. Didn't do me any harm .

I agree, it is a cop-out. the problem is there really is a lack of variety, although it's probably easier for girls to dress is clothes rom the boy's section than vice versa.

Scarlett you don't have to buy your DD's clothes in Asda

Girls clothes seem to largely come in all colours, but they are always girlified and pretty, with lacy bits or puffy sleaves or pleats or glitter or embroidery, just so we know that the blue t shirt is a girl's t-shirt and not a boy's one

A bit annoying when I want one of the lighter coloured t shirts for DS

Oh, hooey, it is personal choice, I have raised two dds well beyond the pink stage without them ever being convinced even to wear a dress, never mind give in to wearing pink day in day out despite friends being "pink" children and the marketing to them being "pink".

I agree there is a lack of choice in Asda but that is simple to get round, shop elsewhere!

I agree OMDB, role models of "pink" aged children are people around them, nursery teachers, grand parents and so on not Barak Obama or Maggie Thatcher.

I am being rather aggressive in my response, I am not sure why but I appologise for it and will try to tone it down a bit.

There is nothing to stop you no canute, assuming you can find girl's clothes that are different. My DD spends most of her time in her brother's old clothes with a few extra bought from nicer shops like Gap and Billabong - but if I had to buy everything new I'd struggle to afford anywhere but George or similar - shops that don't exactly break the mould.

But of course in the end it is up to parents. Although that doesn't solve the problem of unimaginative parents who quite like their little princesses conforming to the girly norm

I love pink girls clothes, but then I have two boys so just admire from afar.

An agree with Mrs Mattie that boys clothes are equally as unimaginative on the whole.

The thing is, the parents who want their children to be girly will not be looking at sites like the one above, they won't be interested in our idea of positive role models will they?

They are that is true - boys clothes are just as dull, but not so vile IMO.

No they won't canute. But perhaps if there wasn't so much marketing of girliness as the norm, people woudn't be so keen. I don't know. I am lucky that DD is a tom boy and rarely wears a skirt let alone anything pink.

DS#1 does though.

I am guilty of saying that Lelli-Kelli shoes are 'stinky' so that dd won't want them.

Dp usually follows this up with "Of course, it's rude to say that to anyone wearing them."

Saying that pink stinks or that Lelli-Kelli is stinky is not wrong. It's just a response to marketing which is aimed at creating a market where I don't want one. There really is no escape.

I agree with OrmIrian - it's not just about the colour. It's all linked in with the early sexualisation of girls; playboy branded goods, high heels for babies, that sort of thing.

I think it's a good idea.

See, as far as I can see, the marketing to boys is just as subversive and "wrong" as the marketing to girls.

Boys are driven into the standard routes just as much as girls are, they have to like Power Rangers, appreciate fast cars and big trucks or whatever and any boy who does not conform is seen as being a bit odd by his peers. The clothing available supports this just as much as girls clothing does. I don't understand how someone can say "oh the poor girls have to wear princesses and glitter what on earth is it doing to their impresionable minds" without also saying "oh the poor boys have to wear bulldozers and skulls what on earth is it doing to their impresionable minds".

It seems to me that the support of the girl is now so far out of synch with support of the boy that we are going to have an inverse problem in not very long. There is so much shouting about the girls that the boys are left in second place, it is hammered home on many levels that they simply do not matter as much as the poor girls who need protecting at all costs.

So, I say again, it is down to parents to think this stuff out for themelves, some will, some won't. Some children will suffer from it, some won't but "pink" in and of itself is not the problem. Parents are the problem.

Pink is widely available & cheap. I personally can't afford to be buying different shoes to go with each outfit so am relieved that the clothes my girls wear (mostly hand-me-downs, tbh) all go with one pair of shoes.

Does it matter what they are wearing? Mine dig in the mud in dresses.

I want them to grow up feisty and feminine. To know that they can do whatever they want and still be feminine. I think that is achievable without a backlash on 'pink'.

I totally agree with your last post, KingCanute, but am totally NOT stalking you

I agree Canute - parents are the problem.

I took dd to football. She was the only girl. About a fifth of the boys did not engage - they just ran around doing their own thing.

If it were my son he'd be paying attention or taken home. I really think the "boys will be boys" attitude has negative implications.

God yes. I think it's even worse when marketed at GROWN UP women. I don't want the female version to be pink, thankyouverymuch!

I tried to do a web search on women in martial arts yesterday. One of the first returns was a site selling PINK sparring gear. I mean, ffs. Yes, that's EXACTLY what's holding back women from the sport - not enough frigging pink!