Children’s clothing brand breaks stereotype of pink for girls and blue for boys

American Sharon Choksi has always struggled with buying clothes for her daughter. Even at a young age (8 years old), the little girl has a strong personality when it comes to choosing what she wears and prefers dinosaurs to princesses. To resolve this situation, Sharon had an innovative idea: she created the brand “Girls Will Be“, with the aim of offering pieces for children who feel more comfortable wearing T-shirts with prints of cars than flowers or butterflies. In total, the e-commerce offers 15 different models of t-shirts, all made to cater to modern girls (or boys) aged between 4 and 12 years old. On the website, Choksi explains her vision: “We want all girls to find clothes that reflect who they are and what they like. We believe there is more than one way to be a girl.”

This breaking of stereotypes created by society has also reached the cinema. the animation brave, by Disney-Pixar, caused a lot of talk when it was released in the United States by bringing a princess very different from those we are used to seeing in the movies. Unlike Snow White, Cinderella or Aurora (from Sleeping Beauty), who hope to be saved by a charming prince, Merida, the protagonist of brave, is a medieval Scottish princess who faces everything and everyone, including monsters and even her own parents. She is not fragile, nothing delicate and much less demure. The rebellious red hair and the basic blue dress without volume are characteristic of the character who walks around carrying a bow and arrow. An unconventional princess! In reality, Merida is a reflection of many other girls who want to dress and play however they feel best without following the tradition of blue for boys and pink for girls.

On the other hand, in April of this year, the Disney Store launched a collection of T-shirts with the words “be a hero” for boys, while the female models have prints with the phrases “I need a hero” or “I only kiss heroes”. . Some customers were so outraged that they proposed boycotting sales as long as the company continued to use gender stereotypes in its products. In an official note, the company’s press office informed that “the shirts were created with the intention of making a ‘witty’ and ‘playful’ mention of the ‘superheroes’ theme, but some consumers did not like this type of humor and considered that the phrases could send the ‘wrong’ message”. Faced with the fact, they decided to remove the products from the store.

In Brazil, children’s clothing brands have not yet invested in the “genderless” trend. Usually, stores are divided into two parts: one decorated with images of princesses, hearts, dolls and bows, all in pink – very pink! On the other side, cars, superheroes and shades of blue flood the imagination of the little ones. This “division” seems so old and natural that it is rare for anyone to question why – which does not happen in adulthood. For decades, the masculine style has been present in women’s wardrobe, both in models of trousers and coats as well as shoes. What “Girls Will Be” defends is that this freedom of choice is also taken into childhood.

It’s worth watching:

“And if a girl likes blue and a boy likes pink, what’s the problem with that?” In this video, Riley Maida, a 4-year-old girl, questions the sexism of the toy industry. Click here and check it out!