What would you want as your first child? A girl or a boy? Whether you’re a woman or a man, just be honest and answer. You might be surprised by your own answer.

Your brother and father get to head out immediately after eating but you have to pick the plates up and clean them with your mother because you are the daughter of the family. You don’t mind though. You were not forced to, but you yourself choose to do it because you were brought up that way. That’s the story of every middle class home with few exceptions. No matter how modern we get or how educated we are, we’ll still keep doing it. Not that anything is wrong with taking care of your own house. But the way that responsibility is implicitly sited on your shoulder is one of the examples of the double standards of society.

Parents claim they can never discriminate among their own children but children always have something else to say. I know a friend who’s been feeling discriminated all her life. While she was sent to an inexpensive private college, her parents did everything for her brother to go abroad for college when she was no less in her studies. She tries to amuse herself by saying it’s because her parents love her more and they want her to always live closer to them. But she confessed she can’t help feeling unimportant, moreover, the second favorite.

When a girl child is born, they say, goddess Laxmi graced their home. But, it has turned into a mere cliché, said just for the heck of it. A daughter, sadly, is secretly considered a liability for the family. However, parents can’t be blamed for that because the age old traditions of dowry and fancy wedding of our conservative society are the real culprits.

In another instance, a principal of a school married off his daughter when she was only 19 while his son, who is much older, is getting married this year. Was it to make room in the house for the new bride? Was it to get rid of the liability first? We don’t know. But it proves there are still many people who cannot break free from age old traditions that encourage gender discrimination.  

However, in recent times, the scenario has changed incredibly, as parents are starting to understand how each child, boy or a girl, deserves the same love and care from them. A girl can become the toughest entrepreneur. Similarly, a boy is capable of becoming the best homemaker or a cloth designer. Modern parents do realize this and they are aware each child is unique and should be cared for equally. With this pace of modernization and awareness, the picture is undoubtedly expected to change for good in future.

So, what’s your answer, A girl or a boy?