'Let Toys Be Toys' Organising Thread - Part 2

[OneHandWavingFree]

"Let Toys Be Toys - For Girls, and Boys" is a campaign started by a group of Mumsnetters, to convince retailers to categorise their toys by theme or function, rather than gender.

We're inviting everyone to 'like' us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter (@LetToysBeToys) and join us right here for discussion and collaborative decision-making about the next steps of our campaign.

Himalaya has been hard at work compiling the information gathered by our fantastic LTBT Mystery Shoppers, and we will be agreeing right here how the surveys will be ranked, which retailers we will be targetting with our message, and how we will go about it.

If you think that girls and boys should feel free to play with whatever toys that interest them most, and that they shouldn't walk into a toy store and feel pressurised to conform into archaic gender roles and stifling stereotypes, please join in the discussion!

Hopefully we will be in the Independent on Sunday this weekend.

I have just spoken with the journalist and the hardest Q she asked me was 'when I have spoken to the companies they tell me that their customer feedback tells them this is what their customers want, how do you respond to that?'

I bullshitted said that I thought that when people say they find girls toys/ boys toys divisions easier they tend to be thinking off Action Men and Barbies etc... but when they realise that stores are classifying every single every single thing as a gendered toy, even the ones that are clearly not then they think it has gone too far.

Great response, Newsworthy. Better than mine which would have been, "Gah, people are sooo stoopid."

We could post in the bloggers forum - where MMe Lindor is often found - and say, anyone want to blog about this? - No prize, but lots of love?

oh yes if we could get a mnetter to blog about it that would be great!

AndIfATenTonTruck, pm'd you about admin group.

That was great response, Newsworthy. I wonder if they could actually sell more stuff if they stopped genderising. Ie. the market widens when you include both genders.

hellooooooooooo

Sorry, you guys have been on my radar, but I haven't had the time to stop and find out exactly what you are doing. I saw that Jump! Mag had been linked to here - thanks for that. It went a bit wild today.

I would love to do something but am totally snowed under at the moment and working FT too.

If anyone wants to write a post for Jump! Mag, I woudl gladly publish it - if you could get a pre-teen to write it, even better.

Feel free to give me a kick and I will tweet/Fb etc

Ooh fab - we could see if anyone has a writing girl here and ask on fb and twitter too.

Well done for your response to that stoopid card mmeL.

I've just seen tricialo has post about ltbt on her blog - has this been connected to fb and twitter and also mumsnet new blog posts of the week?

Once I've got the website finished and up then I'll write a blog post and x-post it on a few forums etc.

thidis havrnt seem that. Csn you link.it herr so we can share it!

I'm just checking with her - or hopefully she'll see this...

Just appearing vaguely to say we need to keep plugging the survey to make our data as robust as possible. Total hypocrite who hasn't done a survey in ages

Just popped over to the 'Boycott Brands' thread and explained why I won't be buying any M&S toys this year, directed ppl over here. If anyone else is boycotting any toy brands this year pop over and tell 'em why

(in discussions of the day)

I mentioned you guys here - it's not a big article just it fitted in with what I was sharing so added a link to your Fb page. Transformers were my childhood

guy who did the article on lego friends
worth following him on Twitter and linking to him - he's got an interview on US TV tomorrow morning.

I know he's American, but if you can retweet some of the things he says, and some of his articles, it will give the campaign a bit of weight.

twitter.com/richardgottlieb

i need to work out how my space bar works.

Mme - are you on FB as Jump?
If you are, that'll add a bit of Kudos to the campaign - if you've got likers on fb, they might like LTBT as well :)

Have you on FB

Thanks MerryLindor!

And thanks Nickel for article and suggestion - will take look

Just noticed the twitter handle logo thing. It's great!

Here's trishawisha blog for fb.
tricialo.wordpress.com/2012/12/05/543/

the Science Museum stuff is all logoed in pink.

I think it's deliberate.
It's supposed to be taking the gender stereotyping out of science (by making the boxes all appear in a "girls' colour"), but the shops don't seem to have got it.

Is it just me that thinks the only positive thing about these boys' girls' toys labels is that the apostrophes are in the right place?

Is it just me that thinks the only positive thing about these boys' girls' toys labels is that the apostrophes are in the right place?

Nickel - which shops are putting the science museum stuff where? (my sainsbos had them on a neutral shelf of gifts). Oh well, I suppose at least if they're putting them on gendered shelves they are either giving girls loads of cool stuff or getting people to buy pink for boys so its nicely subversive of the usual pink girly crap.

The Science Museum online shop seems to be exemplary. If its not yet in the survey, should it be? (I'm not sure if we were including non-generalist retailers). We've got DD enough for xmas but we're so going there for her birthday shopping!