Grace Brydge

 From the time you are born, you are set an expectation of what you should wear, what you should think, and how you should act, and all of these are based on your assigned gender at birth. These are called stereotypes. Stereotypes are a fixed image of a particular person or thing. Lessons about gender start very early in life and can have long-term consequences. I have first researched gender roles in boys and girls from birth since that is what my topic is. I came across an article talking about all sorts of things relating to this. The article pointed out that someone's sex and gender are two different things. Sex is what you are assigned at birth based on your body's biology. Gender is who you identify and has nothing to do with your biology. Most children start to become aware of their gender identity at the age of two or three, this is shown usually in preferences of what toys children like to play with and often the clothes they show appeal to. The stereotype old as time ...

 In the readings, I learned a few things I had not thought of before. These readings were all about the music industry and the controversy surrounding it. When it comes to being a man, specific artists have led the way and have a huge influence on what listeners think, wear, and how they feel. "A love letter to the musicians who made us rethink what manhood means" explains many are not comfortable with the traditional idea of manhood that is often forced upon them by artists. Those who work at GQ gave examples of artists who have pushed these norms. My favorite and most familiar being Prince. Prince writes in a very vulnerable way. He writes about love and loneliness, something men don't typically write about. I never realized how big of an influence the music industry has on us and this reading has opened my eyes to see that these norms need to continuously be pushed. "No Shade, But there's a Wrong Way to Make a Gay Anthem" I never really thought about how ...

 With the number of people who identify as transgender is growing, this results in bullying that puts a strain on high schoolers ' mental health. Something that shocked me from the readings is that the CDC reports 35% of transgender and non-binary students have attempted suicide. This is such a high percentage and is heartbreaking to hear what occurs especially in the school system. Many students look to drag to help alleviate anxiety and depression. Another thing that I learned that I was unaware of is that traditional drag in different forms has been around for at least more than 100 years. Drag lets people express themselves fully without shame. I have also learned about the controversy surrounding RuPaul's show. RuPaul has contradicted his famous mantra stating "you are born naked the rest is drag" by making claims that drag is only for cisgender men dressing up very feminine. This left shows like "Dragula" to make it know they are all for inclusitivity ...