Anyway, this morning on the Today Show, a mother and son sat with Meredith Vieira. The mother spoke about raising her child and the book she wrote about her child to help other parents. This story may sound boring to you, but once you watch the video, you'll see what makes this a novel tale.
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This brought plenty of questions to my mind that I think can springboard the new year with a new look on acceptance.
- Does this mark a change in the the general American perceptions of gender roles? if not, what did? Or was there not a change?
- How does this define (or redefine) "normal" for you?
- Does this mark a change in the African-American community about gender (masculinity more specifically)?
- Could this be just a phase or does this mark something bigger (sexuality) for Dyson?
- What does this teach about acceptance and self-acceptance?
I am still marinating on this video, hoping to hear some feedback and maybe even start interesting discourse.
I will not make assumptions about other nations and cultures, but I do know the United States is in the middle of numerous cultural and social changes.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I do not believe this marks a change in perception of gender roles. However, I do believe this is a step forward in education on what should be considered natural and appropriate self-expression.
To extrapolate on the rest of his personality based on the examples of his interests in this sole video would be short sighted. Who is to say dyson does not have other talents or interests that are indeed very masculine, and at the moment he is enjoying the attention he is recieving from the acceptence of his unusual perception of what is pretty or desirable?
I think we should ask ourselves first what is masculine and what is feminine then discuss where these constructs came from. I think once we have a grasp on these ideas then we can better form an understanding of gender roles and why we have them.
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