Hmmm...

baby and crumble

Ok, I'm gonna stick this up and see what people think... Saw it in a thread on AH about a little boy dressing up as a girl (on which note, responses in AH were generally really positive, so yay!)

http://www.thelocal.se/20232/20090623/

Pop’s parents, both 24, made a decision when their baby was born to keep Pop’s sex a secret. Aside from a select few – those who have changed the child’s diaper – nobody knows Pop’s gender; if anyone enquires, Pop’s parents simply say they don’t disclose this information.

In an interview with newspaper Svenska Dagbladet in March, the parents were quoted saying their decision was rooted in the feminist philosophy that gender is a social construction.

“We want Pop to grow up more freely and avoid being forced into a specific gender mould from the outset,” Pop’s mother said. “It's cruel to bring a child into the world with a blue or pink stamp on their forehead.”

The child's parents said so long as they keep Pop’s gender a secret, he or she will be able to avoid preconceived notions of how people should be treated if male or female.

More info in the article, but that's the gist of it.

What do we think? I'm not sure. Academically I like the idea of it, but practically I'm not sure how feasible it is...

stephen_n

It's an interesting experiment but not one I would be willing to use my child for. In the end the child knowing it's loved is the most important thing but pulling it so far outside social conformity could have long term effects and it wouldn't be a risk I would take as a parent.

rainbowdrop

Remind's me of Ebenasha, the sexually ambiguous baby in 'Rick and Steve - The Happiest Gay Couple in All The World':D:cool:

Can't see how it would be possible in real life to keep a baby's sex secret, or why you would want to? A baby isn't a guinea pig to carry out experiments on.........

Chuchoter

Personally I think growing up in an environment of lying and secrecy would do more damage than gender stereotyping which will happen anyway when Pop goes to school. You can quite easily work around stereotyping without lying all the time and constantly changing the way they look. Interesting idea, but rather irresponsible.

Aard

Plus once s/he learns to talk, like all kids, they'll start asking and being asked, "Are you a boy or a girl?" You can guess where the conversation goes! Cat's out of the bag, and then the onslaught of questions.

There's better soap boxes than your child.