Sophia and I went to the play area at Brentwood Mall this past weekend. I sat along the side of the play area as Sophia ran off to play. A few minutes after we arrived, a little girl ran to her mom, who was seated beside me, saying "Mom, that boy yelled at me". My heart sank when I heard the mom say "Oh, he's a boy. Boys like to yell." Will the little girl hear enough messages like this as she grows up that she will just accept being yelled at as being par for the course? With the Jian Ghomeshi story so current in the news now, it made me wonder how parents play a role in the fact that women do not report being assaulted by men.
Later on, Sophia ran to me to say that a boy pushed her off the slide. I said to her that that was not very nice of the boy. Then I heard myself say "But that's ok, just go play on the other slide". Ouch. So I quickly corrected myself and I said "Actually, Sophia, that was not okay. The best thing to do is dust yourself off and try the slide again. He if comes near you again, tell him to go away."
I don't know if that was the right thing to say but I do know that telling her that "it was okay" was NOT the right thing to say.
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