I'm with you DR and Mini.
The thing is, on its own and if we actually had total gender equality, this wouldn't matter. It is a small thing, compared to unequal pay or DV rates.
But it is a million, million small things like this that add up to the constant subliminal messages to boys and girls that result i those exact larger-scale sexism problems.
Girls are forever being associated with the sweet, the delicate, the decorative, the less essential, the frivolous, the nice, the yummy, etc.
Boys are associated with the active, the essential, the proactive, the scientific, the tough, the necessary, the adventurous, the world of work. Like the coat hook pics I talked about, or look at kids clothing designs and themes.
In itself on one occasion this may not matter or it may seem minor but taken as a whole, this is what constantly tells women that they should not rock the boat, that they have to be nice and sweet, that they have a duty to look good, that they shouldn't stand up for their rights, that they aren't as important, that they don't have as much of a role in the important stuff, that they are there to cheer people up, etc etc. etc.
And those messages are going to boys too.
That DIRECTLY feeds into situations like in relationships where the woman ends up taking responsibility for buying presents for all his extended family, or feeling like she has to have sex to keep him happy even if she doesn't fancy it, or the man or his mother give her a hard time about her appearance or for working outside the home instead of being a full-time nurturing mother figure, or she doesn't feel she can cause a stink about unfair housework division. And it feeds into women's reluctance to push themselves forward for pay rises or propmotions, and employers' tendencies to see them differently if they do. All these things are documented and often discussed on here. They are CAUSED by endless subliminal, small-scale messages exactly like what Dr has noticed here.