The logistical and ethical problems with trying to make toys gender-neutral

You Can Give a Boy a Doll, 

but You Can't Make Him Play With It

... subterfuge and propaganda appear to be the order of the day in Sweden. 

In their efforts to free children from the constraints of gender, the Swedish reformers are imposing their own set of inviolate rules, standards, and taboos. 

.................

• Is it discriminatory and degrading for toy catalogs to show girls playing with tea sets and boys with Nerf guns? 
• A Swedish regulatory group says yes. 
• The Reklamombudsmannen (RO) has reprimanded Top-Toy, a licensee of Toys"R"Us and one of the largest toy companies in Northern Europe, for its "outdated" advertisements and has pressured it to mend its "narrow-minded" ways. 
• After receiving "training and guidance" from RO equity experts, Top-Toy introduced gender neutrality in its 2012 Christmas catalogue. 
• The catalog shows little boys playing with a Barbie Dream House and girls with guns and gory action figures. 
• As its marketing director explains, "For several years, we have found that the gender debate has grown so strong in the Swedish market that we have had to adjust."
• Swedes can be remarkably thorough in their pursuit of gender parity. 
• A few years ago, a feminist political party proposed a law requiring men to sit while urinating—less messy and more equal. 

Read more: www.theatlantic.com