Rosa was not always "color girl" – nor the blue, "boy" | World

The above paragraph was published a hundred years ago in 1918 by an American children's fashion magazine, Earnshaw, intended for industry professionals. It was discovered by Jo Paoletti, Emeritus Professor of American Studies at the University of Maryland, USA, and author of the book Pink and Blue: Telling Boys to American Girls (Pink and Blue: to distinguish boys from girls in the United States).

"(In finding this sentence) I put my badumptions in reverse," recalls the researcher during a conversation with BBC News Brazil. After all, the rose had not always been a girl's color, not even the blue boy.

"The idea that there is something natural and permanent in the use of pink for girls and blue for boys is historically false," says Paoletti.

"It is also wrong to think that if you do not treat children according to a gender stereotype, they will grow up to become confused, perverted, homobadual, transgender, a kind that is born a homobadual or trans identity."

Thursday, the use of Brazilian social networks pink and blue mobilized Brazilian social networks, thus making the point of the most commented topics on Twitter. The reason was the release of a video of Damares Alves, Prime Minister occupying the file Women, Family and Human Rights – created by Jair Bolsonaro, replacing the Ministry of Women, Racial Equality and of Human Rights of Dilma Rousseff's Government.

"Attention, be careful! It's a new era in Brazil – a boy dressed in blue and a girl in pink!", Explains Damares Alves in the video. The phrase was followed in chorus by the supporters. Then everyone is slender, including the minister, clearly excited.

The context of expression is the intention of the new government to fight against the so-called "badist ideology". The term, which is not recognized by scholars, has been popularized by segments opposed to the idea that gender is a social construct and is therefore not limited to biological bad. ;one person.

"I made a metaphor against the ideology of the genre, but boys and girls can wear blue, pink, bright colors, anyway, the way they feel better, "said the minister in an interview to the newspaper The State of S. Paulo.

White dress for baby and female blue in reference to the Virgin Mary

The division of colors of boys and girls is a recent social construction, says Paoletti. "One hundred years ago, babies wore white dresses, regardless of gender, and white clothes were easier to clean because they could be boiled," she says. In addition, it was easier to change the diaper of a baby in a dress than in pants.

"When colors were introduced into children's clothing, they were pastel shades, but no matter whether they were pink or blue, they were usually chosen according to the physical type of the child. with brown eyes dressed in pink, people thought it was better, "says Paoletti.

The use of colors also varied by region, explains the researcher. "In some Catholic countries, the use of blue in girls was common because blue was badociated with the Virgin Mary.In other Catholic countries, such as France and Belgium, the first son was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and was dressed in blue, boy or girl. "

More recently, the use of pink in girls and blue in boys has been normalized throughout the world. ;West. How did it happen? One of the explanations is that the pattern would have been created by the American fashion industry and extended to other countries.

Marco Del Giudice, professor of psychology at the University of New Mexico, badyzed the occurrences of pink and blue in boys and girls in a database of millions of books, published after 1880. According to him, references to "the rose for girls" began to be more abundant from the end of the Second World War, in the 1940s.

In addition, other symbolisms related to gender have become childlike, like bows and hearts for girls, planes and balls for boys "Previously, children's fashion was defined by convenience and convenience, and now people are more interested in making sure that their child looks like the stereotype of a boy, "said Paoletti.

Girls prefer pink? Science says no

A 2011 study published by the British Psychological Society examined the color preferences of infants and children from 7 months to 5 years of age. Each child received a pair of objects, one with pink color and the other with a second color. The researchers then noted the preference or rejection of pink objects.

As a result, girls and boys under one year of age chose similar pink items. That is, there was no gender preference for color.

At the age of two, girls began to prefer pink a little more often than boys. And after two-and-a-half years, the preference for rose has increased among girls, while the rejection of the rose has prevailed in boys.

According to the researchers, the preference for pink at this age can be explained by the gender identification given by adults and ultimately absorbed by children.