Author: Madhura Joshi | March 14, 2020
Parents do you want to make sure the girls in your life know they can do and be anything they want? Then it’s time to flex some muscle and start busting gender stereotypes!
Hegemonic myth:
‘The perception that men are the dominant sex, strong and independent, while women need to be protected.’ This idea starts in early childhood, reinforced by schools, parents and media. Interviews with children and their guardians revealed that the onset of puberty triggers increased reinforcement of pressure to conform to hegemonic sex-typed identities and roles.
The rigid social norms and gender-based discrimination limit the perceived control that both girls and boys have over their own lives and futures, and that this perceived lack of control can have deleterious effects on their mental health and overall well-being. (Understanding and tackling the gendered drivers of poor adolescent mental health June, 2017, ICRW,Unicef-MentalHealth-WhitePaper)
Girl Scouts’ Developmental Psychologist Andrea Bastiani Archibald, Ph.D. puts it this way: “Kids have this amazing, natural ability to see the world as limitless, but when adults signal that certain things or behaviors are off limits for kids based on their gender, their worlds get smaller and smaller—and that’s not just sad, it can be damaging as well.”
To make sure our girls understand that they can accomplish anything they want in life, try these six easy tips and encourage your friends, family, and neighbours to do the same!(https://www.girlscouts.org/en/raising-girls/leadership/life-skills/everyday-ways-to-bust-gender-stereotypes.html)
1. Let toys be toys—for girls and boys!
Make sure your children get a wide variety of toys to play with. You never know what they’ll gravitate toward or why. The point is that you won’t know what your child might really be into unless she’s given options and encouraged to seek out what interests her most. And if she prefers dolls over dump trucks? So be it! There’s nothing wrong with a girl who loves playing tea party while wearing a dress, as long as it’s her choice and not the only option presented her.
2. Plan meaningful meet-ups
Expose your children—boys and girls!—to women who’ve followed all sorts of paths in life. Helping your little ones understand that the women in their lives have interests, passions, and careers outside of the family life they see will expand your children’s horizons and show them all the things women can be and do.
3. Watch, then talk
After watching a movie or TV show with your girl, set aside some time to talk about what you’ve just seen, making sure to discuss how different genders were portrayed. The more we help our girls look critically at the media and come to understand the negative impact of gender stereotypes, the better equipped they’ll be to defy them throughout their lives.”
4. Think before you speak
The way you speak about the women in your life (and yourself!) has a huge impact on the way your girl views herself. Try broadening what you praise in other women beyond looks by noting their skills, abilities and accomplishments. We need to do more to show girls all that they’re valued for. And the same goes for negative comments. When your daughter hears you talking negatively about the way you or another woman looks, she’s learning to pick apart her own looks and judge others based on appearances. She’s looking to you as a role model in life, so if you want her to be kind to herself, you can show her how by being good to yourself first.
5. Remember that chores have no gender
Put household responsibilities on a rotating schedule, so that everyone gets to try their hand at everything. Having mastered these skills will benefit both your girls and your boys, showing them that there’s no such thing as men’s work or women’s work—it’s all just work!”
6. Embrace Adventure
Engaging girls in active sports, especially those not traditionally seen as “ladylike” helps her see her body as strong and capable, and not just “pretty.” Plus, it’ll teach her from an early age that the fun of sports isn’t just something for boys to enjoy—she belongs in these places and on these teams, too.
Rina, a young girl from Kosovo gives strong and clear message to all of us through the UPSHIFT program by UNICEF.
It’s not easy to challenge stereotypes, but society doesn’t change if you don’t start changing yourself first.”