UK supermarket chain ASDA has been criticised for a boys’ top it has on sale.
The top reads “Boy, noun: 1. Digger of dirt, noise maker, lots of mischief. See also; ‘Handsome’ ‘Cool’.”
Mum Liann Weir spotted it in her local store and took issue with its message, voicing her anger on Twitter, .
“Really asda… this is pretty poor. What message are we giving our boys?” she wrote.
“We are raising a generation of boys (and girls) who think they should be/think or feel a certain way because of the messages they receive in ways like this.
“When they don’t/can’t conform to stereotypes like this their mental health can suffer.”
When asked by a fellow user whether the top was OK for boys who identify with the ‘definition’ on it, she replied “Yip. But I know my own son is so much more than this.”
Let Toys Be Toys, a group that claims to challenge gender stereotyping in childhood, echoed Liann’s message.
This is really disappointing and sends an unhelpful message to both boys and girls about how they should behave cc @letclothesbe https://t.co/gOIQ2XsKjg
— Let Toys Be Toys (@LetToysBeToys) February 3, 2018
ASDA has apologised, saying it hadn’t meant to offend with the top.
It’s just the latest retailer to be accused of gender-stereotyping in kids clothes.
Disney, Zara, Clarks and Sainsburys have all come in for criticism in the past year.
Some stores have taken steps in response to the backlash against ‘gendered’ clothes.
Department store John Lewis has done away with ‘boys’ and ‘girls’ labels in its kids’ clothing while River Island released a gender-neutral range for children last year.
