Page 66 - English Tehelka Issue 6 - March 31, 2018

ideas

Gender prejudices start

at home at age zero

often wonder about the magnitude of
enGender I liams can be pros at tennis then why cant
gender discrimination, the fact that al-
daughters play tennis with their fathers?”;
“boys too are emotional and it’s certainly
most half the population of the world
revolution is unequal to the other half and that important to instil emotional intelligence
in them”.
too since forever! Blatant gender dis-
Ridhima parities exist even in countries where men I find such generalisations about small
malhotRa and women have equal rights. girls and boys in bad taste. What bothers
Gender disparity is not something that
me is that they have become so deep-rooted
women start facing all of a sudden. It’s part in people’s mindsets that it is normal to be-
of their lives since the time they are babies. lieve and say such things.
The writer, Executive Yes, this is true for most women! In fact, such attitudes exist even in toy
Editor of Tehelka, is an And what often lead to gender discrimi- stores! Whenever I have visited a toy store
unapologetic feminist nation are gender prejudices that may and asked for assistance in buying a toy for
seem harmless on the outside but are ulti- a child, the first question I have always faced
mately toxic for the cause of equality of the is whether it’s for a boy or a girl.
sexes. Now why are toys different for children
Gender prejudices exist in the very small of different sexes? Because it’s believed
things of everyday life even in childhood. that kitchen sets can only be given to girls
For instance, a little girl might be lovingly as they are the ones who should get used to
called ‘princess’ and even treated like one the idea of cooking and because guns are to
by her parents. In such a case, she will most be gifted only to boys because they are to be
probably eventually learn to be docile and filled with hollow notions of masculinity.
delicate ‘like a princess’ and imbibe the Why can’t a boy play with a kitchen set
qualities for a lifetime. or a doll and why cant a small girl play with
On the other hand, boys are referred to cars and guns just like boys do? Only be-
as ‘tigers’ and ‘champions’ and are ‘taught’ to cause we have been conditioned to think
be rough and naughty. These things might this way and continue to impart such illogi-
appear to be ‘normal’ and innocuous. cal training to the next generations.
However, such preconceived notions Different attitudes in bringing up boys
about the differences between girls and and girls is exactly how gender prejudices
boys are quite pernicious because eventual- take shape and eventually build up result-
Different ly they snowball into illogical presumptions ing in marginalisation of women. Once the
attitudes in about distinctions between the characteris- kids grow up, there are even more gender
prejudices that they face.
tics and capabilities of men and women.
bringing up especially young expectant couples curi- personal conversations — “I told my son
I have personally heard so many people,
Again, I would like to give examples from
girls and boys ous about the sex of their unborn child, say that it’s important for boys to study maths”,
is exactly things like “boys are naughty while girls “I want my daughter to pursue a profession
suitable for women”, “Women are not really
are well-behaved”, “if it’s a boy then I (the
how gender father) can play tennis with him”, “I wonder that good at driving”, “My boy is old enough
prejudices if I’m emotionally equipped to bring up a to stop crying like a girl”, and many more!
girl” (this came from the mother, sigh!), and
Such irrational misogynist mindsets are
take shape some other similar horrendous generalisa- offshoots of the fine-grained disparities be-
and eventually tions about little babies and small children. tween girls and boys in their childhood that
build the foundation for glaring injustices
I have been angered and answered back
result in gender each time — “I have personally seen enough against women.
discrimination naughty little girls and well-behaved little ridhima@tehelka.com
boys”; “When Sania Mirza and Serena Wil-

Tehelka / 31 march 2018 66 www.Tehelka.com

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