How would you define gender? Is gender natural, or is it socially constructed and if it's socially constructed, does that mean gender is anything someone wants it to be?
I believe that gender is completely natural, but media and society have created genders roles that we consider social norms. When we are born, both boy and girl babies are exactly the same. They all cry and eat the same way, no matter what gender they identify with. I watched an interesting documentary on Amazon about being born intersex and the struggles of having to identify with one gender. We live in a society where everything is black or white when it comes to gender. You're either a girl or a boy and with that label, if you identify as a girl, you like dresses and dolls or if you identify as a boy, you like trucks and action figures. Though media teaches us this, gender is not black or white, but instead is more of a spectrum. When kids get older, everything is gender coded. From the toys kids play with to the clothes they were, everything is gender specific. Gender is more of a self-identify that the individual needs to decide on, not something based off of what toys kids play with or what clothing they were. As we discussed in class, these gender stereotypes that our society has created makes it really hard for kids who want to truly be themselves and not follow the social norms. I hope that media will break away from these gender stereotypes, letting kids be themselves.
The iconic doll maker company that creates Barbie dolls just released a commercial for their new Moschino Barbie with a boy appearing in the commercial. I'm really excited that Barbie is trying to break away from these stereotypical gender roles and hope more companies join in!
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