Prince Harry and Meghan Markle to Raise Their Child ‘Gender Neutral’
Royal couple 'plan to raise their child with a fluid approach to gender'
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markel plan to raise their child "gender neutral" and refuse to "impose stereotypes" on their baby, who is due in April, according to reports.
The Duchess of Sussex has reportedly declared that she and third in line to the throne Harry, 34, "plan to raise their child with a fluid approach to gender and they won’t be imposing any stereotypes," as reported by Vanity Fair.
The 37-year-old Duchess is said to have told her friends that the Royal couple will be avoiding gender-stereotypes associated with a traditional "born-male" son or "born-female" daughter.
The revelation comes just a month after it was reported that the couple decorated their nursery with a gender-neutral theme for the unborn child.
"Meghan has been talking to some of her friends about the birth and how she and Harry plan to raise their baby," a source told the magazine.
"Her exact word was fluid."
"She said they plan to raise their child with a fluid approach to gender and they won’t be imposing any stereotypes," the royal insider added.
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It's unclear what exactly the royal may have meant by the term "fluid," as there are multiple interpretations of what that might look like.
In some cases "gender fluidity" can refer to people who sometimes "identify" as male and sometimes as female as opposed to someone who is transgender and identifies as a gender other than their biological gender for a permanent or semi-permanent period.
According to the Daily Mail, there is a small group of parents who are raising "theybies" — children who aren't identified as male or female.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex's modern approach to parenting may be a testament to Meghan's California upbringing, as focusing on more of a gender-fluid upbringing has proven to be a popular view shared by many liberal A-list stars.
Kate Hudson recently made headlines after she revealed in an interview with AOL that she is planning to take a "genderless approach" to raising her newborn daughter Rani.
Following a backlash, she later clarified her statement, explaining that she simply meant she is raising her kids to feel free to be whoever they want to be.
"Me saying a 'genderless approach' was a way of refocusing the conversation in a direction that could exist outside of the female stereotype," she said.
"It just felt a little antiquated to me. Not all girls want to be a princess, some want to be a king."
Angelina Jolie, Bryce Dallas Howard, and Russel Brand are also among the celebrities who have spoken candidly about steering clear of gender stereotypes while raising their children.
In January, it was reported that Meghan and Harry designed an eco-friendly, gender-neutral nursery at their new home, Frogmore Cottage in Windsor, where they plan to move before the baby's expected arrival in late April, early May.
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Royal sources said the nursery will be painted in trendy whites and grays, with Meghan avoiding any paints tested on animals or ones that contain milk or bee’s wax as an ingredient.
Instead, she has chosen a vegan, non-toxic, eco-friendly emulsion by Organic and Natural Paint Co.
The sex of the royal baby remains unclear, but it was recently reported that Meghan told a friend at her lavish baby shower in New York City that she and Harry are expecting a boy.
It's possible that Meghan took a gender-neutral approach to her shower decor, as her close pals were treated to multiple cupcakes iced in pink and green frosting as well as stork-shaped cake pops and miniature slices of carrot cake.
Meghan's decision to avoid raise her child without gender stereotypes could be linked to her history of battling gender discrimination from an early age.
In 1993, Meghan wrote a letter to Procter & Gamble lobbying the Ivory Dishwashing Liquid manufacturer to change its "chauvinistic" commercial after watching it in her grade school social studies class.
The commercial proclaimed that "women all over America are fighting greasy pots and pans," and Meghan took issue with the "sexist" phrasing.
"I don't think it is right for kids to grow up thinking that mom does everything," she told Nick News that year.
Proctor & Gamble responded by changing the wording of the commercial from "women" to "people."
