The Lookout recently published an article about a Canadian family who recently had a baby blank.
What's a baby blank, you might ask?
It's a baby whose gender is kept secret. Even the baby's grandparents haven't been let in on the secret. Only the diaper-changers know... and they're not telling.
The parents named the child Storm. They've explained the reasoning they've followed in not revealing the child's gender as follows: "We've decided not to share Storm's sex for now--a tribute to freedom and choice in place of limitation, a stand up to what the world could become in Storm's lifetime (a more progressive place? ...)" They went on to explain, ""If you really want to get to know someone, you don't ask what's between their legs." By withholding this information, the parents feel that Storm will have the freedom to choose who (s)he wants to be.
Evidently Storm's folks had read A Fabulous Child's Story, by Lois Gould. This is a tale of a child, X, who was raised as neither a boy nor a girl, and who is now described as "well-adjusted".
I used to think I was "well-adjusted" too, until I read this story. Now I worry that I may have been irrevocably harmed by my parents' decision to divulge my sex prematurely.
This couple's older two kids, Jazz and Kio (ages 5 and 2 respectively), have been allowed the freedom to choose whether or not to grow their hair and whether to dress in boys' or girls' clothing. They wear their hair long and love to dress in pink, so they're often mistaken for girls. Their parents don't correct those who incorrectly identify the children as girls; they leave it up to the kids to do so if they wish.
The children are also educated unconventionally. Rather than being homeschooled, they are unschooled. This means that the child's learning is guided by their curiosity. The parents didn't want their children to be educated by "something that happens by rote from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays in a building with a group of same-age people, planned, implemented and assessed by someone else".
What do you think? Are these parents allowing their children freedom, or are they abdicating their parental responsibilities? Do you think the children will be better adjusted than those raised more conventionally?
I think the parents just acheived what they have been trying to...FAME.
ReplyDeleteI also feel quite bad for those kids...they may not be neglected...but where is their future? They don't let people be doctors or lawyers who are "curious"!
I am furious! This is absolutley wrong...the rest of us would be jailed or fined or punished somehow if we did not send our kids to school...what makes those people so special?
ok...done....lol....I am here to return the follow and say hi I am off to see the meme list...I have one on Friday that I host...I love seeing everyone!
I'm speechless! This is a whole new level of coddling children. No, typically when you get to know someone you don't ask what their gender is because it is usually apparent.
ReplyDeleteI'm your new follower! I look forward to reading more posts.
Hmmm, I'm not sure how I feel about it. I think what they are doing in terms of not revealing the gender of their youngest is a little extreme. I have no problem with boys wearing pink and growing their hair out. I'm fine with that. I'm a bit concerned with the unschooling. Sure, the educational system may be flawed, but there are some basics that should definitely be covered.
ReplyDeleteWhat will probably happen is their children will rebel and become totally conventional? Sometimes I think kids are the ones who are here to teach us and make us more flexible.
I think gender norms are a huge part of who we are, and there's nothing wrong with that. It will be hard for those children to relate to other children and someday form a family unit if they don't understand others' expectations of them. I guess that's the whole point, but not all expecations are bad.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how long they will be able to keep the child's sex a secret?
I'm with Tootsie. I don't see how "unschooling" can be a legal choice. School attendance is compulsory. And you can't make it in our society with at least a basic education.