We hope you approve...

We are excited and proud to launch Pinkstinks Approved - A page celebrating the gender-free children's products you love! Please send photos and suggestions of your favourites  to pinkstinks.info@googlemail.com and we'll publish them here. For inspiration have a look to see who we've 'approved' already...

We're running a short survey and would like to hear from YOU about your experiences of 'pester power' and 'pinkification'. You can link to the anonymous survey HERE.

Our NEW Role Model of the Month page is now online, featuring Explorer Felicity Aston.

This month also saw the publication of Natasha Walter's IMPORTANT new book: Living Dolls - the return of sexism. We are thrilled to get a mention on page 236! Natasha tackles issues surrounding today's highly sexualised and increasingly narrow definition of femininity, and she eloquently takes issue with the 'rhetoric of choice which masks the very real pressures on this generation of women'. Please read IT and spread the word.

Finally, we received an amazing COMMENT to our blog from an 11-year-old girl which sums up what we are all about and what we hope to achieve:

'I'm a 11 year old girl and I HATE PINK and glittery fairy princesses! I LOVE science, maths climbing trees and science experiments that go bang.

'I moved to France when I was 9 and there's not as much pink as in England with the clothes but it's still quite bad with the toys.

'In England, I decided to join the Brownies as I enjoy adventure and camping. But soon I got bored as there was to much pink and girlie stuff so I joined the Cubs instead. Cubs was much better and there was not a trace of pink. We got to climb trees, cook on the fire, make shelters, none of this we did in Brownies.

'I get really annoyed when the science toys are on the 'boys'' side of the shops.  Since moving here I've met women who work at CERN - the largest science experiment in the world and the place where I want to work when I grow up.  I went to a great day organised by 'Expanding your Horizons' for girls interested in science.  This was a really good idea because I got to meet girls like me who like science which was really nice because I'm usually the odd one out.  http://www.expandingyourhorizons.org/

'I think wearing pink by choice is fine but I'd like to wear green.  In the UK it was really hard to find clothes for me that were green. It is almost as though the shops are saying 'girls SHOULD wear pink' and also that girls who like science and want to wear green are weird.

'So I look forward to seeing more things on 'cooltobeme'.  Perhaps some ideas for fun stuff to go, puzzles, reviews of books that show that girls can have adventures and be just as good as boys at solving mysteries.'

February 2010

Pinkstinks is a campaign and social enterprise that challenges the culture of pink which invades every aspect of girls' lives.

This site is for parents and non parents alike, and aims to gather support, promote discussion and ultimately to mobilize that support to influence marketeers and the media about the importance of promoting positive gender roles to girls.

Research tells us that self-esteem amongst girls is at its lowest ever and we are asking WHY?

We believe that body image obsession is starting younger and younger, and that the seeds are sown during the pink stage, as young girls are taught the boundaries within which they will grow up, as well as narrow and damaging messages about what it is to be a girl.

Support for Pinkstinks

As a father of two small girls, aged 3 years and 8 months, I am frustrated by my constant struggle to find toys and, more importantly, literature, beyond the realms of princesses and fairies (all of whom seem only interested in finding a prince, wearing dresses and getting married). Andrew Kinmont

I have been checking out your website and your campaign and I want to say that I'm thrilled to find others out there with significant concerns around the 'pinking' of everything for girls. Soumya Srinivasan

My names Gloria and I'm 10 Pinkstinks ROCKS! Gloria Coles

I think what you're doing is fantastic and I'm heartened that people out there are taking a stand against this. Amy Moir

Hooray for common sense and normal sensible people. Vicky Prescott

Congratulations on doing something positive about this issue. I just been moaning about it since my 18 month old  grand-daughter was born. I couldn't believe how things had gone backwards since the 1970s when my children were born. Dr Elizabeth Capewell

Have tried in vain to buy non pink clothes for my nine year old and come up against the clothing industry's obsession with pink. Have made complaints in shops but have not really been taken seriously. Jane and Anna Linfoot