What boys and girls should or shouldn’t wear and where should we draw the gender line?

Growing up you always heard people around you telling you what you should wear as a boy/girl or what you should or shouldn’t do, basically what is appropriate for a boy/girl to look like. But how does that affect your freedom of choice today and should you still be conforming to that way of thinking, which is boys wear blue and girls wear pink.

Last week we talked about the idea of having freedom of expression and learning to take advantage of it. This idea speaks great volume today in terms of wearing things that are gender-free based and actually not having to wonder what people will think of your look. I have noticed that in recent years the Fashion world has shifted its outlook and there are a lot of blurred lines when dealing with what is gender appropriate for male and female.

This is why I think that learning to embrace your own style now can be easily attained than in the past. When you go into stores you find that in some fashion trends, the crossover between what should be appropriate between girls/boys is very slim. For example, the skinny jeans or leggings trend is suitable for all genders. And yes, there are times when you can tell which one is more appropriate for boys and which for girls. But there also other times when if it weren’t for the store’s sign above telling you which section, boy or girl, you’re in, you would end up being very confused.

I have also been noticing that a lot of mothers or parents these days are leaning more towards gender neutral clothes or colours for their infants. By them doing this, they are starting to shape the mind sets of little ones and saying that it’s not about what others think you should wear but rather what you feel like wearing. This later on leads to people who are very much gender-free thinkers.

When I was younger it was inappropriate for my brother to even consider wearing nail polish or any form of “girl” clothes or products. But today you find that more males are walking around with make-up, nail polish, even in the fashion world you find designers doing skirts for the males which was previously regarded as a female ensemble. So really our society seems to be leaning towards a more gender-free based society.

It seems that more and more people are starting to take to this new trend when it was not so long ago regarded as very inappropriate. But what I like most about this gender-free based trend is the fact that it speaks to each individual’s core desire to be who they want to be regardless of what others what them to conform to.

When people truly understand that having freedom does not only end in speech but goes further into what you wear and how you portray yourself, then I believe people will truly live happy lives. Each person has a right to look as they wish to as long as it doesn’t hinder someone else’s views, race, gender or culture. And if people choose to wear skirts instead of pants, it should be regarded as a personal statement they want to share with the world.

Tell us what you think, do you believe that people should have the right to gender-free fashion or should we all stick to dressing gender-appropriately?

Written by Phoebe Sibomana

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