Resisting “Pinkification”

           I had a lovely interview with Slate.com's Brian Palmer yesterday about gender-specific children's clothing. We had a great talk talking about the history of it all, especially the pinkification of girls' -- well, everything. There are signs of change in recent years, with the coming-of –age of the children of the mid-1980s. The evidence is emerging from many directions. There playful reinterpretations of “traditional” feminine styling such as punk baby girl outfits in pink and black, and other colors – purple, turquoise, green -- are sharing rack place. Even more telling, older boys and men are reclaiming pink. Pink dress shirts and ties have enjoyed a revival, beginning around 2004. My son’s college Ultimate team’s colors are pink and black; until they actually ordered team shirts in 2008, they wore women’s pink t-shirts, hoodies and warm-up pants found in thrift stores. Hearing about this book, a colleague passed along her son’s favorite t-shirt from third grade, purchased in 2007 at a local J.C. Penny – a light pink shirt with these words:

     10 REASONS I WEAR PINK

• ·      It was my last clean shirt.
•      My Mom made me wear it.
•      I make this color look good.
•      My Dad did the laundry.
•      I wear this shirt to annoy you
•      Smart people wear pink.
•      It’s my party shirt.
•      Pink is the new black.
•      It’s a fashion statement.

     And last but not least,
     TOUGH GUYS WEAR PINK!