Last month, the internet went wild when the first photos of Rihanna and A$AP Rocky’s newborn son, Riot Rose Mayers, were released. The adorable baby boy was wearing pink in the pictures, which sparked a range of reactions from adoration to confusion. People couldn’t help but wonder if Rihanna had actually given birth to a girl.
In today’s society, it has become more acceptable for girls to wear clothing traditionally associated with boys. However, there is still a stigma attached to boys wearing “feminine” styles like pink, ruffles, bows, floral prints, and colors such as purple and pink. Baby girl fashion still has its own set of issues, but it seems that baby boys have even less freedom to experiment with their wardrobe.
Surprisingly, this gender association with colors is a recent development. According to Professor Joey Fink, a gender history specialist at High Point University, children’s clothing used to be gender-neutral up until the 19th century. Young children would wear simple white dresses until the age of 4 or 6. The lack of color and uniformity made it easy to adjust the clothing as the child grew, and white garments could be cleaned without worrying about damaging the colors.
It wasn’t until the early 20th century that colors became associated with gender. In the 1910s and 1920s, some popular magazines claimed that blue was a delicate color suitable for girls, while pink, being closer to powerful red, was for boys. After World War II, there was an emphasis on differentiating clothing for babies and young children based on their gender, solidifying the association of pink with girls and blue with boys.
Katy Huie Harrison, an author dedicated to challenging societal norms, explains that these stylistic stereotypes became prominent after World War II when femininity made a comeback. Women, who had played a significant role in the workforce during the war, returned to their homes and swapped their denim for more ornate house dresses. Floral prints and intricate designs became fashionable.
According to Jo Paoletti, author of “Pink and Blue: Telling the Boys from the Girls in America,” pink clothing for little boys could still be found in the 1970s, but it was becoming increasingly rare.
But does color really matter? Studies have shown that gender-coded clothing can influence how we perceive others and ourselves. In a 2014 experiment, participants tended to select risk-averse treatments for boys wearing blue and risk-taking treatments for boys wearing pink. A Japanese study from 2018 found that men wearing pink expressed stronger egalitarian sex-role attitudes. Additionally, a 2011 study revealed that color-based associations influence children’s behavior and reinforce stereotypes in adulthood.
Experts argue that the problem with pink and blue lies in the stereotypes they have come to represent. The harmful stereotype that boys who wear pink are less masculine can have significant impacts on mental health. Children are highly sensitive to social norms and expectations. Criticism, teasing, or exclusion for wearing pink can create stress and social pressure, leading to long-lasting consequences for their self-esteem, identity, and expression. On the other hand, some children may grow stronger and challenge gender stereotypes, asserting their individuality.
Fortunately, some clothing brands are working to break these traditional expectations. Brands like MORI offer unisex baby clothes with a variety of colors and patterns, including pink, that can be passed down between siblings and friends. StereoType Kids was founded with the intention of breaking fashion rules by providing gender-free clothing options that don’t rely on neutral colors and patterns. The founder, Elizabeth Brunner, wants to eliminate the limitations imposed on children by labels and societal expectations.
While seeing celebrity babies like Riot Rose challenging gender norms by wearing pink is a step in the right direction, there is still a long way to go. History shows us that our perception of colors evolves over time, but it takes time for these changes to become widely accepted.
