ABSTRACT
Being a gender-conscious parent is a long, uphill battle. Despite picking the most ubiquitous pair of school trainers the author could find, his daughter can't squeeze her foot past the open laces. On their return trip to the clothing shop, she races off to the nearest colourful offering she can see, the inevitable GIRL sign towering overhead. Comfort should be key, yet children's choices in clothing and shoes are being limited by gender-coded designs and displays, built on traditional ideas about what it means to be male or female. Perplexed parents have taken to social media to share photos of girls’ and boys’ clothes side by side to illustrate the practice of cutting inches off girls’ tops and T-shirts, from both the length and the waist.
