Monday, April 21, 2014

Gendered Chapstick

As we all know, the media is covered with gendered images. Turn on the television, watch youtube video, or drive your car around town and you will see "women's" products covered in flowers, pink  and round packaging and "men's" products covered in dark colored and squared packaging. Even products for young men and women have become extremely gendered. The moment that I was truly convinced that these images were ridiculous and absolutely help perpetuate gender stereotypes was when I had a male friend talk about buying "men's lip balm", a product that 100% does not have to be gendered and is only about the packaging that it comes in. When I asked him whats the difference and why it mattered he said "it's for men". The outrageousness of this idea had be baffled, that women and men could use the EXACT same product but were targeted and lured towards a certain type of product do to it's packaging and imagery. I had heard in classes also that "women's" products, although it may be the same exact thing as what men are sold, usually cost more than "men's" products.

This article is about a father who was tired of seeing his daughters targeted by companies that were using gendered imagery. He took matters into his own hands and made gender neutral personal hygiene products.




http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/04/21/fed-gender-stereotyping-dad-made-unisex-skincare-brand-teens

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