Guy W. Farmer: Gender confusion in Sweden and beyond

Did you hear about the college student who was kicked out of class for arguing with his professor about whether there are only two genders — male and female — or many more? The student held out for two genders, and lost the argument, which isn’t surprising in an increasingly politically correct world.

Fortunately, the student was reinstated and the professor was disciplined, but that temporary setback won’t stop gender-bending crusaders from pushing their insidious agenda everywhere and at all times. A recent example of the “gender fluidity” crusade occurred in Sweden, where many preschools — that’s right, preschools — are disrupting traditional gender roles, but don’t take my word for it. Here’s how Ellen Barry of the New York Times described what’s going on in Sweden:

“Something was wrong with the Penguins, the incoming class of toddlers at the Seafarer’s Preschool in a wooded suburb south of Stockholm. The boys were clamorous and physical (while) the girls whimpered to be picked up ... At this school, however, that’s not OK. Their teachers cleared the room of cars and dolls, put the boys in charge of the kitchen (and) made the girls practice shouting ‘No!’”

The idea is to make sure little boys don’t act like little boys and little girls don’t act like little girls. That’s because many “progressive” Swedish politicians and bureaucrats “urge teachers and principals to embrace their role as social engineers, requiring them to counteract traditional gender roles and gender patterns,” according to Ms. Barry.

“It’s normal in many Swedish preschools for teachers to avoid referring to their students’ gender,” she wrote. “Instead of ‘boys and girls,’ they say ‘friends’ or call children by name. Play is organized to prevent children from sorting themselves by gender.” And no, I’m not making this stuff up. The left-leaning Seattle Times thought this story was important enough to devote half of page two to it last Sunday.

Some socially conservative Swedes are pushing back against the socialist government’s attempts to blur gender differences. Newspaper columnist Tanja Bergkvist routinely attacks what she calls “Sweden’s gender madness,” but says many Swedes are afraid to criticize the government because “they don’t want to be regarded as against equality.”

It’s a brave new world out there and “gender madness” will be coming to a school near you sooner or later. The Reno Gazette-Journal thought this subject was important enough to devote a page and a half to it last Sunday with an Associated Press article headlined, “Unisex trend reflects new gender awareness.” According to the formerly staid AP (my alma mater), “Unisex names for babies are on the rise among parents more willing than ever to embrace the possibility of gender fluidity in their children ...”

You may be surprised to learn Clark County is drafting a policy to protect “gender diverse” students, who apparently don’t know whether they’re boys or girls. The trusty AP reported Las Vegas school officials are considering questions about “how gender diverse students access school restrooms and locker rooms,” which could result in boys showering with girls, and vice versa, if this gender fluidity thing reaches its ultimate absurdity ... and it just might. I think most teenage boys would probably enjoy showering with the girls.

In Maryland a federal judge recently decided a student named Max who was born a girl but identifies as a boy can change his/her clothes in the boys’ locker room as we march forward into a brave new world where gender identity is a relative concept rather than a biological fact. You heard it here first.

Guy W. Farmer identifies as an elderly male person.