Boys Can Be Princesses Too: How a Photographer Helps Parents Get Rid of Gender Stereotypes

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Kitty Wolf, a Chicago-based photographer, launched an unusual photography project in the past year. She wants to prove that boys can be princesses too, if they want to. Kitty claims that this is the same as if they are playing superheroes. They are not really them either! Whether it is right or not, harmful or useful, these are controversial questions. Or maybe the whole point is only in our stereotypes that it is not courageous?

From childhood, both our parents and the people around us tell us: this is for boys, and this is for girls. Or such, with condemnation, when you do something wrong: "Well, you're a girl!" When a boy does something wrong, it sounds exactly the same, everything is also judgmental: "Well, you are a boy!" Often we ourselves tell our children this, what can we hide! Photographer Kitty Wolf believes that you should not limit the child's imagination to the rigid framework of his gender. "After all, the clothes of a superhero and the shell of the teenage mutant ninja turtles also do not make him one or the other!" she asserts. Likewise, a princess dress doesn't make him a girl. This is just a game!" Play cannot make someone weak or inferior.

The photographer's project was born after one incident that she witnessed during her preschool activities. During free games in class, one boy loved to play the princess. The girls, his classmates, laughed at him and said that he could not be a princess, because he is a boy. Princesses are for girls! The boy did not answer them, which means ninja turtles are only for boys! Kitty Wolff had an idea in her head about how unfair it was.

While Kitty Wolf was creating a series of photographs dedicated to princesses, she suddenly remembered that little preschooler. And, according to her, she was shocked like an electric shock at that moment: boys are like princesses! She became interested in trying to defeat the stereotypes of society in this matter. Kitty had a team of professional models who portrayed princesses, photography skills, and a huge following on Facebook. Her original plan was simply to post cute pictures of the princess boys on her website. But the project had the effect of an exploding bomb!

Of course, the experience was not one hundred percent positive. Unfortunately, the pictures of the boys in dresses offended many people's feelings. Kitty was very upset about this. With the wrong thoughts and feelings, she created all this. But she had to endure a lot of negativity in her address. She received many letters filled with hate. An avalanche of offensive, horrible comments hit her page. The photographer was accused of all mortal sins, called names and even threatened!

Many people cannot come to terms with the fact that they see a boy wearing a dress. But all these hateful remarks not only do not stop Kitty Wolf, they inspire her to go on this difficult path further! She believes that as long as there is hatred, this project is necessary. Therefore, he is not going to stop there. The photographer is even grateful to her ill-wishers, because they are doing a great job of spreading information about her project. The main goal of the project Kitty Wolf believes is the distribution of these photographs around the world. And this is mainly achieved by the fact that one person, being angry, posted photos of the project on Twitter - and you can now see it there.

There were also people who approved the photographer's project and left laudatory comments about her work. They liked the idea so much that they started uploading pictures of their princess sons. There were a lot of comments from fans of Wolf's work that if it had been during their childhood, it would have helped them a lot. All this shows that the project is needed. Which means, Kitty thinks, it was worth it.

In an interview with one publication, Wolf said that she would like to thank those parents who decided to take part in the project. It was really very daring. All of them perfectly understood what the reaction of society could be. They knew that there would be a lot of negativity, but they also knew another thing, that this project was extremely important. First of all, it is important for their children. Parents were ready to support their sons, to show them their love, regardless of anything. Kitty also added that everyone should strive to be equally good parents for their children. The Internet community has split into several camps when discussing the photographer's campaign. Some wholeheartedly supported the main idea of the project, which is that everyone is free to be who he wants. Others wondered if there was any pressure on the children to do something they didn't really want. Still others pointed to the fact that boys are called "princes" and girls - "princesses."

According to the photographer Kitty on her website, she wanted a series of photos of the boys dressing up as their favorite Disney princesses and taking pictures with these princesses. “I know there are little boys who love these fairy-tale characters as much as little girls. We throw princess parties for these girls. Our interaction with the boys was rare for one reason or another. But we see that there are such boys, we know them and love them! Children met their favorite characters and took pictures in their costumes. It was happiness for them.

Kitty is not a professional photographer; for her, in her own words, it is more of a hobby. But she really liked the process of working on the project. And she advises everyone not to be afraid of anything, but to get up and go do what you like. You can endlessly argue about whether this is good or bad. One thing is clear: if this is being discussed so hotly, it means that this is indeed a very important topic. For me personally, the question of whether it is permissible to dress a boy in the attire of a princess, and even post this photo on social networks, is completely unambiguous. But everyone should decide for themselves, and be able to take responsibility for their decisions and beliefs. If you are interested in the topic, read our other article about how famous women opposed the system and won. Based on materials