Philosopher, feminist, parent, and cyclist! Co-founder of Fit Is a Feminist Issue, co-author of Fit at Mid-Life: A Feminist Fitness Journey, published by Greystone Books.
View all posts by Sam B
2 thoughts on “Throwback Thursday! : What’s So Bad about Pink Anyway?”
I understand the frustration as a consumer of colour choices, when pink is presented as the only colour or 1 out 2-3 colours for outdoor /fitness wear and fitness equipment.
But has it occurred to anyone here, that some men don’t want to buy black /brown/dark blue outdoor sportswear jackets for cycling, hiking any sport? And these are common, sometimes limited choices for men. Today, I just read a regular local guy cyclist in a cycling forum that he just found colour choices limiting for winter cycling and felt that women had brighter/flashier choices.. My partner has never bought a jacket in those colours for sports…he’s been cycling for the past 24 years. He has told me explicitly never to buy blue tops for him. (He has blue eyes.) Ok, fine honey…
I understand whole-heartedly that doing sports and inspiring ourselves means wearing a colour outwardly that makes us feel strong and dynamic. Anything to help us sometimes.
At the same time, I find for myself when I get into the “zone” of cycling for a long period time, I’m listening to my body, my whole senses. Not paying attention to my clothing colour. As a cyclist, I’m moving enough, that I appear in someone’s vision in less than 2 min. at most, unless we are at a traffic stop/light.
Last year, I did complain to a big local bike store about their lack of choice for women’s cycling jackets that were high visibility, not pink and in my size (which is xsmall). They did accordingly stock something broader next season.
Let me give you another analogy: You know the mandarin collar tops ..a take on Chinese women’s fashion? I initially avoided wearing something like that because I felt so friggin’ “ethnic”, so “Chinese”, so “immigrant”,…. I was afraid of feeling 2nd class…. someone like myself born in Canada and has lived in Canada my whole life. The last thing I wanted to do was to suggest looking more “foreign”.
Then I realized how stupid I was: I would need surgery not to be Asian in appearance. So no clothing (or makeup) could ever “mask” that.
So clothing colour does not define your confidence, the richness of your life experiences nor your strength. If other people assume wrongly: their problem.
As for the feminist mom who didn’t choose pink for her daughter:
Better off, allowing some pink as something for a girl to experiment without making a big deal. The more a parent makes something harmless, as “forbidden”, the more attractive the object becomes for the child.
No I don’t have any pink cycling wear. But I do have lavender short sleeved jersey. Well, hey I was new cycling and it’s durable, to me, non-flashy. I still wear it on the bike everywhere. No big deal.
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In the end, worrying about pink coloured clothing is pretty small potatoes, ….compared to some far more complex issues for some women of colour (meaning skin tone)….issues of racism.
A pink..is a pale issue (sorry for the pun). Please see a much bigger picture of feminism.
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I understand the frustration as a consumer of colour choices, when pink is presented as the only colour or 1 out 2-3 colours for outdoor /fitness wear and fitness equipment.
But has it occurred to anyone here, that some men don’t want to buy black /brown/dark blue outdoor sportswear jackets for cycling, hiking any sport? And these are common, sometimes limited choices for men. Today, I just read a regular local guy cyclist in a cycling forum that he just found colour choices limiting for winter cycling and felt that women had brighter/flashier choices.. My partner has never bought a jacket in those colours for sports…he’s been cycling for the past 24 years. He has told me explicitly never to buy blue tops for him. (He has blue eyes.) Ok, fine honey…
I understand whole-heartedly that doing sports and inspiring ourselves means wearing a colour outwardly that makes us feel strong and dynamic. Anything to help us sometimes.
At the same time, I find for myself when I get into the “zone” of cycling for a long period time, I’m listening to my body, my whole senses. Not paying attention to my clothing colour. As a cyclist, I’m moving enough, that I appear in someone’s vision in less than 2 min. at most, unless we are at a traffic stop/light.
Last year, I did complain to a big local bike store about their lack of choice for women’s cycling jackets that were high visibility, not pink and in my size (which is xsmall). They did accordingly stock something broader next season.
Let me give you another analogy: You know the mandarin collar tops ..a take on Chinese women’s fashion? I initially avoided wearing something like that because I felt so friggin’ “ethnic”, so “Chinese”, so “immigrant”,…. I was afraid of feeling 2nd class…. someone like myself born in Canada and has lived in Canada my whole life. The last thing I wanted to do was to suggest looking more “foreign”.
Then I realized how stupid I was: I would need surgery not to be Asian in appearance. So no clothing (or makeup) could ever “mask” that.
So clothing colour does not define your confidence, the richness of your life experiences nor your strength. If other people assume wrongly: their problem.
As for the feminist mom who didn’t choose pink for her daughter:
Better off, allowing some pink as something for a girl to experiment without making a big deal. The more a parent makes something harmless, as “forbidden”, the more attractive the object becomes for the child.
No I don’t have any pink cycling wear. But I do have lavender short sleeved jersey. Well, hey I was new cycling and it’s durable, to me, non-flashy. I still wear it on the bike everywhere. No big deal.
In the end, worrying about pink coloured clothing is pretty small potatoes, ….compared to some far more complex issues for some women of colour (meaning skin tone)….issues of racism.
A pink..is a pale issue (sorry for the pun). Please see a much bigger picture of feminism.