Author Archives: Joy

Parenting Outside the Gender Box: A Research Project

Posted on September 5, 2014 by Joy

Our guest blog today comes from a graduate student doing really cool research that may help build a bridge from parents’ personal advocacy for their kids to larger public policy changes. My name is Krysti Ryan. I am graduate student … Continue reading →

Posted in Parenting, Research, What You Can Do | 7 Comments

Feds state clearly that Title IX protects gender nonconformity

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Joy

Breaking news! The Transgender Law Center is praising the U.S. Department of Education for releasing new guidelines yesterday regarding Title IX and sexual violence that make clear Title IX covers gender identity and gender stereotypes. From their website you can read … Continue reading →

Posted in bullying, education, Musings on the News, Parenting | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Even One

Posted on March 28, 2014 by Joy

Part of the description tag of this blog is “what happens to kids who don’t care to live in boxes.” Well, apparently, one thing that happens is that they get kicked out of school. Meet Kamryn Renfro of Colorado. She … Continue reading →

Posted in Musings on the News | Tagged | 4 Comments

My Little Pony Update

Posted on March 25, 2014 by Joy

An update on my last post about the boy in Buncombe County, NC who was told not to bring his My Little Pony lunch bag to school because it was a “trigger for bullying:” The Huffington Post reports that the … Continue reading →

Posted in Masculinity, Musings on the News | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Fury. And hope.

Posted on March 19, 2014 by Joy

Here in North Carolina, Buncombe County Schools are getting some unwanted attention. When 9 year-old Grayson Bruce brought a My Little Pony lunch bag to school (featuring Rainbow Dash) he got shoved around and harassed by other kids. The school … Continue reading →

Posted in Masculinity, Musings on the News, Toys | Tagged , | 4 Comments

The Wig Dilemma of 2013

Posted on October 23, 2013 by Joy

I always love hearing from y’all, and many of us have swapped stories off blog. But every once in a while, I think, “everybody’s going to want to hear this!” This is one such story, continuing our Halloween theme, from … Continue reading →

Posted in Holidays, Parenting, Princesses | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

Halloween: When the princess is the elephant in the room

Posted on October 13, 2013 by Joy

Halloween is almost upon us. In the book Gender Born, Gender Made Diane Ehrensaft says, When Halloween arrives, it is not just the goblins that come out of the closet. So do children’s wishes to be all that they may … Continue reading →

Posted in Clothing, Holidays, Parenting | Tagged , , , | 11 Comments

Cassidy Lynn Campbell crowned homecoming queen

Posted on September 21, 2013 by Joy

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/video?id=9256585&pid=9256575 (won’t let me embed – don’t know why!) The local ABC news station shared a typical local news story last night about the crowning of the Marina High School homecoming queen in Huntington Beach, California. What is sending it … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Blast from the Past

Posted on July 24, 2013 by Joy

Since I mentioned in my last post how news coverage of gender expression has changed recently, I just had to share this “blast from the past” that my father found going through old papers yesterday. It’s good to remember that … Continue reading →

Posted in Masculinity, Musings on the News, Social construction, The boy box | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Today’s ABC News

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Joy

Today ABC News published an interview with Tim Snyder about being the father of a gender-nonconforming son. Now folks will always (always!) find something to quibble with about however gender expression gets presented, explained, or framed. But I think this … Continue reading →

Posted in Gender complexity, Musings on the News, Parenting, The space between, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments