Gender Roles
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Dear society,
I'm not sorry.
I'm not sorry that I don't have the perfect figure,
I'm not sorry that I dress the way I want,
I'm not sorry that I don't meet your expectations.
Who left the tap on?
When his building storm spills out,She is made to carry the overflow
He refuses to call a plumberAnd there’s only so much flooding this room can take
When I was a little girl
I was told to be a princess
I was told to fix my hair
Paint my nails
and wear fancy shoes
I tried to like what I was told to do
And strained my face
and pulled my hair
Auror:
Hair a lucious carbon
Smile smoldering bright
Eyes showcasing a glaring flame of wit
He is a man indeed so that should make him a knight
But in order to be so, society's expectations he must fit
You wanted me to be a princess and you my knight
and for us to live forever in everlasting light
live in a beautiful castle happy ever after
fill our days with love and laughter
But I'm a dragon, not a maid
It is boys like you who consciously
Brainwash girls
And preach how “natural” is better
And overly sexualize her body as if they weren’t a breathing human
They've written "pink" in permanent ink on everything I own: my body's curves, my voice's verve - they scratched it into stone. The word is there on everything I have and have not known -
I am a strong, independent woman
Let me repeat myself
You obviously weren’t listening
I am a strong independent woman
There’s never been a way out of it, these gender roles, these confinements, these chains you put on me weighing me down.
It’s either pink or blue, black white, rich poor, minority majority.
Put the food down,
Girls look better thin.
Don't frown,
Smiles always win.
Don't cry,
People will think you're insane.
Look away from football,
Let boys enjoy their game.
infants are stamped to maximize efficiency
to help society run smoothly, you understand
yes, they're stamped
right between their chubby little legs
categorized in neat little boxes
I am not a numberYou cannot quantify meMy worthBy a number less than 4Or greater than 200 You cannot apply your labelsAnd your boxesYou cannot make my world black and whiteOr make me exist In 2 dimensional space I am a goddessAn ethereal beingGre
I crush me between my fingers and palm, squeezing tightly - relentlessly
Into my balled up fist I threw the things that make me me.
The bad things -
I wasn’t allowed to play with Legos.
Santa never brought me a PS3.
I was never allowed to walk home from school.
I was never taught how to change the oil in my car.
I’m never asked to carry things.
I
“Nothing is set in stone;
besides, I don’t even know what I want.
I don’t care about your hopes and dreams;
my needs matter so much more.”
II
We've created an army of identical twins,
318,457,385 of them today, more tomorrow.
All mirror images staring blankly back at each other,
unable to see the similarities,
They were used to me being girly
Fat.
Insecure.
Sensitive.
I dreamed to be a thin designer that put others under the control
of my charms
of my domesticity
A cook, a designer, a wife.
Why you? The one i adore. Why you? The one with a high score. Why you? Who seem so real. Why you? The one whos skin always peel. Why you? Who makes my blood boil. Why you? Who's mind is soiled. Why you? Who sweeps my mind. Why you?
Smile. Laugh. Nod.
Impersonate a goddess.
Your smile is fake.
Your laugh is fake.
Everything is fake, fake, fake.
You’re not happy.
You settled for less.
Like a chain, a chain that
Shackles her to her grave;
Is this any different?
Well, from shackles, she can be saved.
