Pink is for Girls, But not this Girl

I found “When Did Girls Start Wearing Pink” by Jeanne Maglaty to be very interesting. I knew before reading it that “blue for boys and pink for girls” was not always “a thing”. However, I did not know the specifics. It doesn't surprise me to learn that branding and stores are the ones who began it. If there is money to be made the advertising industry will be the first to do something with it.

The article reminds me of another online article I stumbled across about a mother who started her own clothing line for her daughter. Sadly I can’t remember the name of the brand or the woman’s name. Her daughter is (or was at the time of the article) in elementary school and just didn't like “girl section” clothes. Everything was pink and princesses. So her mother decided to make her own line and sell it online. It features more neutral colors of blues and greens and pictures and slogans about sports and science. This is similar to the end of the article. There are many people out there, parents and kids, who don’t really want to be type cast.

I remember when I was in first grade my favorite color used to be pink. But then one day, just on a whim, I changed my mind and made it gold. Specifically, something NOT pink. I wore nothing but jeans and t-shirts to school and only wore dresses, which I didn't mind that much, on holidays. But I knew pink was the “girly” color. I didn't want to be “girly”, or type cast, even at 7.

I can understand why parents would want their babies, who can’t talk or express themselves, to wear gender specific clothing. It makes it easier for others to look and see what gender the child is and not have to ask. But as we age and gain the ability TO talk and TO think creatively and have opinions, perhaps it would be worthwhile to have more clothing options for our children to express themselves than just the “pink and blue” sections.