Dear Ijeawele, a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions

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著者（女性）が、友人（娘が生まれたばかりの母親）から「娘（名前はChizalum）をfeministに育てる為にはどのようにしたらよいか？」と問われ、それに15の提言で答えたものです。 渡辺由佳里さんの洋書ファンクラブで紹介されていて、子育ての参考になりそうだったので読んでみました。

15の提言は、著者の友人（"母親"）に宛てて書かれたものではありますが、私（"父親"）にも参考になりそうな点が多々ありました。その中でも、特に私が心に留めておきたいと思った箇所は…

Motherhood is a glorious gift, but do not define yourself solely by motherhood. Be a full person. Your child will benefit from that.

You love what you do, and loving what you do is a great gift to give your child.

　→まずは、親自身が自分の人生を充実させる必要がある。

Do not even tell her that she should or should not do something because she is a girl.

If we don't place the straitjacket of gender roles on young children, we give them space to reach their full potential.

　→性別に捉われず、子供には、好きなこと、興味を持ったことをやらせよう。

Books will help her understand and question the world, help her express herself, and help her in whatever she wants to become - a chef, a scientist, a singer, all benefit from the skills that reading brings.

　→子供には、とにかく本を読ませよう。

Teach her to question language. Language is the repository of our prejudices, our beliefs and our assumptions. But to teach her that, you have to question your own language.

Teach Chizalum that the woman is a mechanic, not a 'lady mechanic'.

　→「けんせつ小町」「ドボジョ」に感じる違和感はこれかなぁ…

We teach girls to be likeable, to be nice, to be false. And we do not teach boys the same.

So instead of teaching Chizalum to be likeable, teach her to be honest. And kind. And brave. Encourage her to speak her mind, to say what she really thinks, to speak truthfully.

　→子供が言いたいこと、思っていることを正直に言えるよう、後押ししよう。

If she likes make-up, let her wear it. If she likes fashion, let her dress up. But if she doesn't like either, let her be.

Don't think that raising her feminist means forcing her to reject femininity. Feminism and femininity are not mutually exclusive.

　→男女同権主義（feminism）と女性らしさ（femininity）は相容れないものではない。

So make sure that you create alternatives for her to see. Let her know that slim white women are beautiful, and that non-slim, non-white women are beautiful. 

　→子供には、いろいろな美しさを伝えよう。

Because social norms are created by human beings, and there is no social norms that cannot be changed.

　→世間で言われている男女の役割は、誰かが作ったものであり絶対的なものではないことを、子供に伝えよう。

Teach her that to love is not only to give but also to take.

I think love is the most important thing in life. Whatever kind, however you define it, but I think of it generally as being valued by another human being and greatly valuing another human being.

　→愛は与えるだけのものではなく、双方向のものであることを、子供に伝えよう。

Teach her about difference. Make difference ordinary. Make difference normal. Teach her not to attach value to difference.

...difference is the reality of our world. And by teaching her about difference, you are equipping her to survive in a diverse world. 

　→世の中には様々な人がいる、一人一人違って当たり前であることを、子供に伝えよう。

上記のほかにも、いろいろと気づかされる点がありました。

本書は約60頁のコンパクトな本で、15の提言の一つ一つも短く、とても読みやすいと思います。個人的には、もう少し詳しく著者の考えを聞きたい感じもしましたが、たまにはこのような簡潔な本もいいですね。女の子を子育て中の方には、特にお勧めできる本だと思います。

邦訳はこちら。