The world is changing and whether you agree with it or not, there’s no way around the topic of gender neutrality. For some adults, it’s hard to fathom and accept how a man can identify as a woman, how a woman can identify as a man and what being gender fluid and non-binary means. It’s even trickier when you try to consider, what are you supposed to teach your children? It leads us to this question, should gender roles be introduced to children or should they be raised gender-neutral?
The argument, as referenced by Alicia Keys in her controversial Instagram post, is that we all have both masculine and feminine traits within us and the concept of gender shouldn’t be forced upon a child. By allowing children to decide who they are or want to be, we can remove the stigma, judgment, and intolerance that leads to violence against anyone who dares to be themselves.
Some will argue that things have gone too far and a child has no ability to make these kinds of decisions for themselves. On the contrary, the idea that more people are opening up to embracing ideologies that may differ from what they’ve been accustomed to is a step in the right direction. It’s been a long journey and the fight continues for people to be who they are without shame or fear of retribution. Gender neutrality is intended to be a good thing, but is it too much? Maybe, it just depends on how you look at it. Instead of viewing this as an agenda that tries to force kids into adopting a certain sexual preference, adults need to do better with viewing kids as people and not just objects that are here to do as they are told.
For too long, children have been overlooked as whole people with their own complex thoughts and feelings. In spite of how you were raised, children deserve to be spoken to, heard and understood. Their views shouldn’t be nullified because you refuse to listen to what they have to say especially when they are expressing how they feel about themselves. Wouldn’t you want to know if you were raising your son and daughter as male and female yet, they identify differently? Wouldn’t you want them to be happy, loved and accepted in whatever form they feel best in? By placing limitations on what your child can or can’t do, what colors they can wear, if it’s ok for them to show emotion or whether they can behave a certain way, you are more likely doing more harm than good. Ultimately, your children are not here to satisfy your wants and desires of who they should be. Whether they identify as male or female, they are here to be loved unconditionally and taught how to be good people who can contribute to society.
