Raising a Baby in a Genderless Environment

Raising a baby in a genderless environment is a controversial issue that I have never given much thought.  Before taking any education classes, I had briefly heard of topics and issues such as this, but I never stopped to consider varying perspectives of the issues.  The education classes that I have taken at the University of North Georgia have definitely helped to open my eyes and my awareness to differing ideas and lifestyle patterns, such as this topic.  Being raised in a small town and in a Southern Baptist family, I have grown up not knowing anything different than having gender revel parties and lavishing the newborn baby with either pink or blue outfits.  Some parents choose to wait until their baby is born to find out the sex.  I have always wondered how the parents are able to adequately prepare the room and buy appropriate outfits for the baby if they do not find out the sex before he or she is born.  For me to entertain this thought process, it solidifies the idea that I have never considered the idea of trying to raise a baby in a genderless environment. 

I am doing my best to keep any open mind and to accept the opinions of others, but I feel that it would be negative to the child if he or she were raised in a genderless environment.  I understand that some parents have chosen to raise their children in this manner, and I recognize that they are doing it so that their children have the opportunity to choose how they want to identify.  On the counter side, I do not feel that trying to raise a child in a genderless environment would yield positive effects.  Instead of this giving the child freedom in his or her expression, I feel that it would primarily lead to great confusion.  As the child grows, matures, and develops, he or she will desire the acceptance of peers and will want to feel welcomed into a friend group.  Even if the child is unschooled or homeschooled and surrounded by family who try their best to provide a genderless environment, the child will eventually learn if he or she is male or female.  While the male or female may not understand what it means to be a girl or boy, he or she will still go through puberty and eventually have to decide how he or she wants to identify. 

One’s gender can be defined by how he or she identifies himself or herself, while one’s sex is defined by his or her physical characteristics.  Gender can be chosen, but sex is almost always predetermined.  Most people categorize themselves as being cisgender, which means that their gender identify matches their sexual orientation.  Others identify as being transgender, which means that the way that they identify themselves does not match their sex.  My concern is that children who are raised in a genderless environment have a greater possibility of being confused about their sex and gender identify.  But, others would argue that those children would have the advantage of having freedom within their gender identity.  As a disclaimer, this is solely my opinion. 

Throughout this post, I have included the word “try” when considering the idea of raising a baby in a genderless environment.  I have included that word in the phrase because I do not feel that it is entirely possible to raise a child without the constructs of gender.  It might be possible to eliminate the factor of gender for the first couple of years of a child’s life, but I do not feel that it is possible to contain the child in a genderless environment for more than the early years of his or her life.  Parents cannot shelter their children forever, and I do not feel that they should try.  Parents should do their best to raise their children in the best way that they know how, but at some point the children must enter the world and begin to experience things for themselves. 

This topic has provoked my thought processes and forced me to think critically about this scenario.  Although I do not support the idea and I do not feel that it will result in positive outcomes, I will not discriminate against parents who choose this for their children.  Within my future classroom, I will treat all students equally regardless of their gender identity.  When I am a professional and within my workplace, I will demonstrate professional behavior and will accept all children and parents.  This is an interesting topic and I am grateful for the opportunity to be able to write about my opinions and gain a greater understanding of others and their decisions.