Today we are still struggling with gender roles and where our hobbies fall in these socially designed lines. It is something that should not be an issue. World famous toy company Lego has been fighting this gender bias for decades.
An old letter from the company to its customers, regarding this issue, has recently surfaced on the web. The photo of the letter has gone viral. It was written in 1974, a time when children were ridiculed for and forbidden to play with toys designed for children of the opposite gender. Yet the words written encouraged parents to let go of these harsh rules and let children play with the toys they find most fun.
The letter urged parents to put their children’s creativity ahead of social pressure.
An anonymous user from news site Reddit authenticated the astonishing letter. He attributed the odd grammar to a poor German translation but notes that the message is still clear.
It reads thus:
To parents
The urge to create is equally strong in all children. Boys and girls. It’s imagination that counts. Not Skill. You build whatever comes into your head, the way you want it. A bed or a truck. A dolls house or a spaceship.
A lot of boys like dolls houses. They’re more human than spaceships. A lot of girls prefer spaceships. They’re more exciting than dolls houses.
The most important thing is to put the right material in their hands and let them create whatever appeals to them.