Girl or Boy
Dani Shay Lyrics

Is that a girl, or is that a boy
I am unsure of their gender and feel the need to put them in a specific box.

Do they play with dolls or do they play with toys
I am trying to confirm their gender based on outdated gender stereotypes.

I have to know the pink or blue,
I am looking for a clear confirmation of their gender based on color preferences.

The pink or blue now
I am relying on a binary understanding of gender with limited options.

How will people think of you, if they don't know how
I am concerned with the opinions of others when it comes to someone's gender identity.

Girl or boy, girl or boy?
I am stuck in a binary understanding of gender and can't see beyond these two options.

Is that a lady or is that a man
I am uncertain of their gender, but am basing it on societal gender constructs of 'man' and 'woman'.

Times have changed and lines are blurred
Gender is becoming more fluid and less defined by societal norms.

And I don't understand
I am struggling to accept and comprehend this changing understanding of gender.

I have to get a grip of this
I am trying to control and make sense of something that is beyond my control.

It's bowing my mind
This is causing me stress and mental strain.

I am not a lesbian, but God she looks fine
I am attracted to this person regardless of their gender, but society has taught me to assume attraction based on gender.

Girl or boy, girl or boy
I am still stuck in a binary understanding of gender.

But God she looks fine
I am attracted to this person regardless of their gender and want to express that attraction.

Oh, but life is not a pink or blue painting
Gender cannot be reduced to a simplistic binary understanding of pink for girls and blue for boys.

Hanging over someone's crib while they're waiting
The gender construct is often imposed on individuals from birth and stifles their individuality.

To grow to be one or the other,
Society expects individuals to fit into one of two gender categories and restricts their ability to express themselves otherwise.

Living to please and to please their mother
Individuals are pressured to conform to societal gender expectations based on the expectations placed on them from birth.

And I hope we can grow to see that everybody is unique
We need to celebrate and respect individuality rather than imposing a binary understanding of gender.

And I know they told us when we were kids
Society has been indoctrinating children with a binary understanding of gender and gender roles from a young age.

But we forget it cause they also said
Despite being taught to celebrate individuality from a young age, societal expectations often override this teaching.

Don't be a p***y to the boy who cried
Boys are conditioned to be strong and 'masculine' and discouraged from expressing their emotions.

And they also said to the girl who fought
Girls are conditioned to be passive and 'feminine' and discouraged from being assertive or aggressive.

That's not very lady like
This phrase implies that there are specific expectations for women's behavior and that deviation from these expectations is unacceptable.

Well we gotta know who decides it
We need to question the societal norms and expectations that dictate gender roles and norms.

Do you or do I?
We need to give individuals agency over their own gender identity and respect their unique self-expression.

Girl or boy, girl or boy, girl or boy
Despite recognizing the limitations of a binary understanding of gender, the singer is still struggling to break free of this rigid definition.