Getting Real with Kira Hazledine
I’m so tired of this push for neutrality. Neutrality is boring. It’s grey in physicality and emotion. It’s complacent. It proclaims nothing but sameness. Neutrality in kids clothing is asking that we don’t differentiate.
I disagree completely. We should differentiate, but not between girls and boys. We should differentiate between likes and dislikes. A love for rainbows versus a preference for trucks, regardless of gender. We should let kids be exactly who they want to be without any label, and that includes neutral.
At the end of the day, it’s just a color.
And my baby boy happens to look fabulous in pink and purple and every other color on the rainbow.
No one gets to decide what my boy will like. It won’t be as easy passing off “girl” clothes on a boy, despite my toddler girl wearing boy clothes confidently without second guesses. Boys should be allowed the same grace, but many times, they aren’t.
As my son gets older, he will have a voice in his clothing choices just like his sister. He will be allowed to shop anywhere in the store, just like his sister. I will not label my son, and I’ll teach him that his voice is the only one that matters when it comes to who he decides to be.
As a parent of both a boy and a girl, I will be teaching different lessons as they age because that is the unfortunate reality of our society. However, this is one of the many lessons that will be taught regardless of gender.
My boy looks great in pink and purple, in blues and reds, in greens and yellows.
My boy is a wonderful human regardless of what color he is wearing. It’s really not that hard. Quit labeling children based on the clothes they wear. This is where true acceptance of self and others starts, and this is a lesson that every child should be learning early. Individuals are amazing, and children, like every color of the rainbow, have value.
