California, first state to display products in store in a neutral way

California on Saturday became the first state to force department stores to display merchandise such as toys and toothbrushes without explicit gender identification in the United States.

The new law, signed by Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, does not ban typical boys and girls sections of department stores, nor does it cover clothing. What he proposes is that the big stores have a gender-neutral section where they display “a reasonable selection” of products, “whether they have traditionally been marketed to girls and boys”.

The disposition only applies to toys and “childcare articles”, such as hygiene and dentition products, in stores with at least 500 employees. This requirement excludes small businesses.

The move marks a victory for LGBT activists who point out that shades of pink and blue in traditional marketing strategies push children to conform to gender stereotypes.

Some Republicans and conservative groups opposed the law, arguing the government shouldn’t tell parents how to buy things for their children.

Evan Low, the father of the law

The Democratic Assembly member from San José, who drafted the bill, said he was “incredibly grateful” that Newsom signed the bill this year. It was the third time Democrats in the state legislature have attempted to pass it after similar proposals failed in 2019 and 2020.

Low said she was inspired by the 10-year-old daughter of one of her staff, who asked her mother why certain items in the store were “excluded” for her because she was a girl.

“We must stop the stigma of what’s acceptable for certain genders and letting kids be kids, ”Low noted. “My hope is that this initiative encourages more establishments in California and the United States to avoid reinforcing harmful and outdated stereotypes,” he added.

Although California is the first state where the measure is mandatory, some department stores have already changed the way they present their products.

Target Corp., which has 1,915 stores in the United States, announced in 2015 that its stores would stop using certain gender-specific signs.

With AP information