Who says girls can’t dress up as Spider-Man for Halloween? Not The Disney Store, apparently—Cosompolitan noticed that the company’s site, which used to sort its Halloween costumes by gender (“Boys” and “Girls”), now groups all costumes under one category: “Kids.” Just last year, the site made clear which types of costumes they felt were meant for whom—all the princess and fairy dresses were “For Girls” and featured pink, while pirates, superheroes, villains and the like were “For Boys” and featured blue. The picture below is from 2013.
Now, the separate Halloween pages are gone. The overall Disney Store site does still have gender-specific pages, but don’t worry—the “Girls” page suggests Darth Vader, Buzz Lightyear and Captain Hook in its list of what’s “Popular For Princesses” (though you may have to click beyond the first set to see them).
We’re glad that more major companies are following the example set by Target, who recently removed gender labels from its Toys, Home and Entertainment sections. This is sure to have a trickle-down effect in which other brands both big-name and small will see the importance of allowing children to explore their interests and identities without feeling pressured to look, behave or dress a particular way.
There is one more step to take, though. While the web design is different, the costume photos remain the same—and very much gender-normative. How many more years will it take before we start seeing girls regularly model superhero costumes? For more kids to be comfortable and confident expressing themselves, they need to see themselves and their preferences reflected in others.