While attempting to shop for my two-year old niece down the "girl's aisle" in Wal-Mart, I think the variations of the color pink blinded my eyes and caused me to run into another shopper's cart. I honestly think that that aisle was the brightest aisle in the whole store. I stayed in the aisle searching for toys that offered the slightest bit of mental growth and stimulation, hands-on activity, and dolls of different shades. I didn't last long after I grabbed a Doc. McStuffins and a Dora doll. I grew frustrated, and darted to two other aisles where I grabbed more Hot Wheels cars, books, and flashcards. Besides the princess attire, Dora, and Barbie taking up a majority of the spaces on the shelves, there was a NERF (for girls) section. The gun (or blaster for sensitive eyes) was designed as a regular gun (meaning like the original NERF gun for boys only), BUT it was decorated with the colors pink, purple, and white with pink flowers on the side of it. YES...flowers. They were perfect and pleasant.Yes, while I'm proceeding to point this blaster and pop you in the back of your head while you're sleeping, my gun and I will look fashionable as I proceed to hit the trigger. Maybe a ton of flowers will fall out. Just rain flowers! The darts: designed and kissed with colors of "femininity". These blasters were created for consumers, of course, but to offer the idea that little girls can (now) play with these guns because of the colors, accessories, and designs. How about to reinforce the existence of gender differences? To suggest that little girls couldn't play with the "masculine" colored blasters because they were for boys (and placed in the "boy's aisle"), but a little color and designs over the same blaster...and VOILA! Girls can play too now!
Why weren't they playing before? Because of the location of the NERF guns and equipment in stores, and the importance of gender and colors of the rainbow society has instilled in people and children. An example? You're expecting your first child and you're going to disclose the sex of the baby at your baby shower. The cake you cut will have a color to symbolize the sex of your unborn. What are the typical color options you ask the baker? PINK (representing a female) or BLUE (representing a male). Where'd the rest of the colors go? Why pink or blue? And who decided what each color represented? Those two color choices are typical-seemingly easy when applying them to gender-and that's not how some of us roll. Is it not okay for a girl to play with a green or blue NERF gun? Is it not okay for a boy to play with a purple or pink NERF gun? Well, of course not. Because of the color, a male playing with an object of "feminine" color suggests he's "too feminine", and a female playing with an object of "masculine" color means she's leaning towards being more "masculine". What about third gender children? Or children who've kept their sex private by choice of their parents? Why have we (as in some of us) allowed color to become such an important deal in reference to objects? What's happening is that children's rights to like what they like are being limited. They're reared to understand what colors are acceptable based on their sex and gender. Just something to think about. I'd also like to suggest wearing sunglasses when you do, in fact, approach the girl's aisle in stores. It's dangerous out there, folks!
With Realness,
Bee Elae
12/31/2013 1:19 a.m.
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