For many parents, the struggle is real to get their kids to put on a mask and actually keep it on â especially if they need to wear it all day while in school. Although mask-wearing, even for children, is important, one mom is thoroughly annoyed with how her daughterâs school was going about it: by handing out gender-specific masks to her class. Ugh. Gender roles rear their ugly head again! According to a tweet posted by Dr. Catherine Lebel of Alberta, Canada, her 8-year-oldâs class where given pink masks for girls and blue for boys â and people online had some feelings about it.
Lebel shared a photo of the masks on her Twitter page on Tuesday.
As the mom explained in her tweet, her daughter came home âirritatedâ about the color-specific ââgirl masksâ and âboy masksâ that were distributed to her class.â
The âgirl masksâ had hearts and lipstick marks on them, and the âboy masksâ were blue and gray.
Speaking with HuffPost Canada, the mom recalled how âshe noticed girls were given one type and boys were given another.â
The Mirror reported that the masks were issued by the Canadian provincial government for schools to hand out and were designed by Old Navy.
"I think itâs really stupid that this happened. Theyâre just masks,â the mom told HuffPost Canada.
In fact, the mom snapped a shot of the masks her daughter was given and the masks her son was given to show there was a difference.
Lebel said that her daughter actually likes the âboys masksâ better and nabbed one of her brotherâs masks instead of using the masks she was given.
Needless to say, Lebel wasnât impressed by the gender-specific masks either.
The mom told the Mirror that her family already had masks at home, but she didnât like the message her kidsâ school was sending by forcing them to conform to gender norms.
After sharing her photo online, more than 11,000 people liked her tweet and many people agreed that in 2020, there is no need to give kids gender-specific masks.
âThe lipsticked mouths on here make me sick!â one commenter wrote in the thread. âThese are for girls? What about putting on chemical elements or prime numbers? Make them all green with trees or grass or the ocean? Systemic racism meet gender stereotypes.â
âMasks distributed in and by schools should absolutely have learning themes on them, in primary colours (or black and white) and let kids choose the ones they want,â someone else commented.
Another person shared a photo of the masks her 3-year-old son chose for himself â why yes, they ARE covered in unicorns.
News flash: Sometimes kids just like what they like!
Lebel told HuffPost Canada that at home she tries to keep a gender-free household. Her kids can play with whatever toys they like and dress however they choose.
âWeâve really tried hard to not have things that are for girls and things that are for boys, but rather just things,â she explained.
The mom wouldnât share which school her kids go to.
A representative for the municipal school district, however, shared a statement with the Mirror, which read:
âThe masks came in a wide variety of colours and patterns from Old Navy and IFR Workwear, and our government had absolutely zero input in deciding which colours were sent. If parents do not like the specific provided masks, they are free to take their concerns to their local schools or purchase other masks.â
Lebel doesnât blame her kidsâ teachers but thinks that the government should have taken a little extra care when deciding how to give out the masks to students.
âIâm guessing that nobody took the time to think about what it might mean and whether itâs appropriate to give masks with kisses to little kids … were guidelines given to how these masks are given out?â she told HuffPost Canada, adding that although she knows this issue isnât more important than other ones, she felt as if no one put the time and effort into getting this right.
âThis [backlash] is sort of something that would have been avoided had the government taken enough time to say, âWeâre going to order masks. Letâs think about how this is going to be perceived,ââ she added.
Lebel said sheâs âirritatedâ by the masks âbut not outraged.â
âCertainly this is not the biggest thing we have to worry about right now, and I am glad to see the school providing masks,â she told the Mirror.
But if weâre going to make masks the number one back-to-school item this year (as we should!) then we really need to get it right.
"It seems unnecessary to promote gender stereotypes and I think itâs important to call them out when I see them,â she added.
