Have you ever watched TED? They feature all sorts of people sharing all sorts of ideas worth spreading and some of the ideas are really neat and innovative! Also, they are hosting a TED Women conference in December about how women and girls reshaping the future. I like that:)
So hubby J hooked me on TED. I was a bit skeptical at first (boring stuff to listen to on the web? Blah!) but most of the talks are very clever and intriguing. Here's one of my favs:
Speaking of TED Women, I was thinking on my walk w/ C and Sadie how glad I am to have a boy as my first child. For some reason I think it will be much easier to raise a son who knows women are capable, strong, and able to do and be anything. Is this because most men in my life think this way and it seems natural to me? Maybe?
I sure don't surround myself with anyone (by choice!) who thinks women are not in every aspect of life as capable and resourceful as men. In every aspect except perhaps strength; I know men physically have (what is it, 5%?) more muscle mass than women. But when you think about it, do men push a baby from inside their body, out their vagina? Could they do that???? I DON'T THINK SO.
But I guess they could if they wanted to and they were physically made for it. Which brings me to the thought that modern medicine would know SOOOOOO much more about morning sickness, pregnancy, and childbirth if men were able to give birth. But this bring us to the topic of how men dominated society and used religion to control gender and cultural freedom for thousands of years and I don't need to get started on that.
But a daughter. What if everyone gifts her pink clothes? I don't want a 'frilly, dipped in pink girl' just as I don't want a 'dressed only in blue, playing with tools and cars' boy. What if she notices how women are portrayed in pop music, politics, and the media? What if she notices how the girl is so often being saved in movies and books, not doing the saving?
Boys are so much easier. All I have to do is let him grow up around me and J as an example and teach him how life should be. For some reason I don't think that's enough for a girl:( I have to hide her from what culture thinks she should be.
This portion of the post was inspired by Liberal Simplicity:)
SO interesting. I love TED talks too :) And, considering your own personality, I bet raising a lil girl would be easier than you think (spoken like someone who's never raised any child of either gender at all period) ... I played with Barbies as a kid and loved frilly pink but have since grown out of both, I'm happy to comment.
ReplyDeleteAnd ... I guess I have my days when I'm affected by billboards and media telling me what I should look like, but all in all, I think I've never felt I couldn't do something or have a job or go somewhere because I was "just" a girl. And I think that has more to do with the fact that my parents didn't treat me any differently than my brothers.
Well. Aside from the time they made me put a shirt on when I was seven and wanted to walk around like my brothers, but other than that, I felt very equal. It wasn't a big lesson or protection thing, it was just ... treating me the same.
So true about the girl stuff. M wears a lot more pink than I ever intended, but I swear this girl is going to be a normal, play in the dirt, use your imagination kid. :)
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