I set out to seek opinions from the great people of Central Park on the issue of gender neutrality in our society and what they perceive of it. Two people picked at random of both genders for purposes of a balance on different perspectives. The first interviewee, John (Not his real name), is a 25-year-old junior accountant working for an insurance company in New York. He graduated with a degree in Business Administration with a specialization in accounting. The second interviewee is Angela (Also not her real name), pursuing a psychology major at Stanford University, currently in her third year of study. She is 20 years old and works part-time at a movie theatre selling tickets.
In general, people seem to be of the notion that gender-neutral pushes the same agenda as feminism, where they advocate for not only equality but also the rights for specific genders. Some also interchange some of the issues put across with gender neutrality with those of feminism. They believed that there would be a major impact on institutions from schools to homes and even the workplace. Schools would have less stereotypical children as the children would be allowed to choose their paths. They would choose whether to play with dolls or the sandbox, or either pink or blue and not have to feel judged for it ( Peeters, 2013) .
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At home, the parents would also allow their children to choose what interests them without influence from their parents. This would mean children would grow up comfortable being themselves and comfortable in their various interests and hobbies. In the workplace as well, there would be more inclusivity of the minorities starting from the acceptable dress codes, to simple things like gender-neutral restrooms ( Martin, 2005).
However, while Angela half-understood the concept, John seemed to have it mixed up with feminism from the way he described the term. John focused more on how having equal rights and responsibilities both in school and at home, and having equal opportunities at the workplace would promote equality and inclusivity. Angela, on the other hand, mentioned gender fluid bathrooms and deeper into the conversation, corrected even her definition as she recalled the concept of being gender binary, disposing of terms such as he/she.
In general, there is still a long way to go in creating awareness of gender-neutrality as a concept that is common in society. For most people, even learning not to use the traditional gender defining terms seems to be a challenge, with good reason, though, as it is challenging to learn using them instead of him/her as John put it amusingly. Most people are still raised the traditional way, with traditional beliefs on what is good for the male child or the female child, defining gender roles, careers for both, and even colors ( Malpas, 2011) . On the bright side, more and more people like Angela are accepting of gender fluidity and even advocating for it. She mentioned, for example, how cool it is that more men are taking traditionally roles considered for women like cooking and being nannies and even being very good at it.
In conclusion, gender-neutrality is promoting equality and inclusivity and a sense of being sensitive to the challenges some of the minority groups go through. The idea of transcending the perspective of gender altogether rather than having to advocate and fight for the rights of all the genders seems more feasible ( Kelan, 2009) . Eradication of stereotypes and giving children and adults alike, the freedom to choose their paths based on who they are, not what society wants them to be, is a step in the right direction. This will encourage a broader spectrum of hobbies and less judgemental society that advocates for the rights of all, not just one. The next five decades look bright, with fewer people put in gender boxes and more awareness. There will hopefully be no more gender roles with jobs for men and some for women. Homes and schools and the workplaces will be full of inclusivity and no more shaming or abuse or violence against minorities.
References.
Kelan, E. K. (2009). Gender fatigue: The ideological dilemma of gender neutrality and
discrimination in organizations. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences/Revue Canadienne des Sciences de l'Administration , 26 (3), 197-210.
Malpas, J. (2011). Between pink and blue: A multi‐dimensional family approach to gender-
nonconforming children and their families. Family Process , 50 (4), 453-470.
Martin, K. A. (2005). William wants a doll. Can he have one? Feminists, childcare advisors, and
gender-neutral child-rearing. Gender & Society , 19 (4), 456-479.
Peeters, J. (2013). Towards a gender-neutral interpretation of professionalism in early
childhood education and care (ECEC).
