Thursday 4 June 2015

Princess Leia's father






I Love Star Wars.

But hey, why do we not talk about Princess Leia being the leader of the Rebels? A Woman a Leader of a group called the Rebels. Very cool.

And why do we not talk about the fact that Darth Vader is also her father?

This is what we teach boys

Why is this okay as a message for young boys? Is it meant for sports? Will it reinforce the belief that testosterone is responsible for poor behavior? 

Would anyone want their daughters or sons to date someone who wore this shirt? It just rings of the lack of responsibility, the lack of self control, the lack of respect. Date rape.

It's not okay to reinforce these subtle messages.

If you think this children's t-shirt is not related to any of the above actions, then when and where do boys and men learn that they aren't responsible for their behavior? Can't Stop, Won't Stop reinforces lack of accountability.

We could pretend that it is meant as a positive message, that perseverance, go-getter, to-the-death trying with whatever positive activity they are engaged in is what is meant, but this message appears more often in the news related to abuse, rape, sexual assault, and violence. Let's teach boys that they can stop, they CAN stop, they CAN STOP. Let's allow them to show up with their good hearts, their good intentions and stop brainwashing them into macho, sexist behavior.