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Debate: Would You Buy This T-Shirt For Your Daughter?
August 31st, 2011
When it comes to shopping for back-to-school clothes, there are bound to be a few battles over the length of a skirt or the tightness of a top. But what happens when the battle is not with your child, but with a clothing retailer? American company JCPenney came under fire recently when angry parents let the company know exactly what they thought about a t-shirt on the company’s website with the slogan “I’m too pretty to do homework so my brother has to do it for me.”
Suggesting that “girls are pretty” while “boys are smart” is unfortunately not a new concept, though it’s one that we’re definitely tired of seeing. We can’t help but feel frustrated by the fact that these kinds of messages continue to be presented to young girls—that it’s more important to be pretty than smart, or that the two are somehow mutually exclusive. JCPenney has taken the shirt off of its website (and issued an apology), but removing the offending shirt doesn’t exactly solve the bigger problem, does it?
Meanwhile, a similar shirt is still available for sale on the company’s website—this one with the slogan “My Best Subjects” and a checklist that includes boys, shopping, music and dancing. Nothing academic, of course—because hey, girls are too pretty for that stuff. We can’t help but wonder: when’s the last time you saw a t-shirt for boys with the same kind of message?
We can’t remember, either.
What do you think—are these t-shirts harmless, or do they send the wrong message to young girls? Do you find them offensive? Would you buy one for your daughter?
Copyright © 2012 St. Joseph Media. All Rights Reserved.
I would think it is up to the parents to decide. If I did buy this t-shirt for my daughter I would make only one change. Remove “boys” from the list. All other subjects from the list are great. When it comes to learning about boys I think that responsibility lies with the parents.
As a parent and a female science teacher, I will never allow my children to wear clothing that elevates themselves above/degrades others (ie. “girls rule, boys drool”) or stereotypes their interests.
What’s amazing to me is that retailers believe that this product would have mass buyer appeal. Sometimes I think we as parents get so busy with the stuff of life that we lose to ability to be critical thinkers. Seeing this on a store shelf it might look like cutesy tween appeal but think about the message. Is that all that our girls have to be interested in? Fairly shallow existence if this were true.
I think these t-shirts are fun and young, I don’t think it’s at all degrading or sexist. It’s just a tshirt. I don’t think ‘My favourite subject is applied algebra’ tshirts would be tremendously popular because it’s a little conservative, quite boring for the teen trend and while your clothing is taken to be a relfection of the inner self, it doesn’t mean you’re vapid and dense simply because you choose a fun shirt. That’s like expecting girls too be dumb for having blonde hair and wearing pink. Lighten up!!!! and I am a mom.