August 17, 2015
In an article for Slate, Amanda Marcotte points out the contradictions in the strong reaction some people are having to Target’s decision to stop promoting certain children’s products as being gender-specific. Franklin Graham has even called for a boycott of Target. Apparently, some conservative Christians think that by removing signs specifying items for girls and items for boys is some sort of plot against nature and contrary to what God intended. Marcotte argues that “ if gender preferences are inborn and natural, then they should sort themselves out, even if Target has fewer signs that say “boys” and “girls.” The only reason to relentlessly gender everything is to teach and enforce gender roles, which you would not have to do if gender preferences were as “natural” as these folks would like to think.”
Read Marcotte’s post, “Gendering Toys Isn’t about Nature or Tradition. It’s about Ideology.”
Related Reading:
“Yes, Target, I do want my daughter to conform to her gender” (Matt Walsh, The Blaze)
10 Questions for Target Critics Regarding “Boys’ Toys” and “Girls’ Toys “ (Rachel Held Evans)
What Franklin Graham Is Wrong About Today (Vol. 1): Gendering Toys (Benjamin Corey, “Formerly Fundie,” blog on Patheos)
