A couple of Swedish parents have stirred up debate in the country by refusing to reveal whether their two-and-a-half-year-old child is a boy or a girl.
Pop’s [not the child's real name] 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 inquires, Pop’s parents simply say they don’t disclose this information.
In an interview with a newspaper 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 mold 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. I believe that the self-confidence and personality that Pop has shaped will remain for a lifetime."
But while Pop’s parents say they have received supportive feedback from many of their peers, not everyone agrees that their chosen course of action will have a positive outcome. “Ignoring children's natures simply doesn’t work,” says Susan Pinker, a psychologist from Toronto, Canada. "Child-rearing should not be about providing an opportunity to prove an ideological point, but about responding to each child’s needs as an individual”
My question to you: Do you think this will help or hurt this child in the future?
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the local article
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