Dear girls in class, who are currently discussing gender politics: I am so proud of you. As you sit there and realise for perhaps the first time the ways that social constructions of gender restrict us, I can almost feel your hearts and minds being opened. And the fact that, although we are studying women’s rights in a girls school, you are discussing how sorry you feel for boys who are socially constrained to being “Male”, while girls have options, makes me practically burst. You’re chatting casually about how unfair it is that girls have so many options for clothing, and yet boys can’t wear dresses, can’t wear skirts… You note that a man once told you he’d love to wear dresses because they look so comfortable, and you agree: yes, dresses are great! Cool in summer, so easily personalised, formal or casual with little effort – and yet boys are stuck wearing the same tux over and over to formal events. Wow, you realise: gender constructions suck for everyone.
You have big hearts, girls, and they are growing bigger. Thank you, thank you, for reminding me that this thing I do… it has purpose.
Thank you for being you.
Dear Girls in Class,
Don’t let socialised gender and sexuality restrict you. If you’re queer*, it’s ok to express that. Don’t let the system get you down. There’s a whole other community out there waiting to catch you if you need us to, even though it might not seem like it right now. It gets so much better.
Don’t let socialised gender make you think that abuse of any sort is your fault. It’s not. Try to believe me. Socialised gender puts us down and blames us as victims, it’s hard to get past that. Don’t let socialised gender stop you for telling someone that something ‘not fantastic’, as I’ve always put it, has happened to you.
Gender constructions suck for everyone, they do. Don’t let them suck for you.
…I need a ‘like’ button for that, Mirja…