Lego toys will no longer be targeted at boys or girls after the brick-making behemoth carried out startling research that showed more than two-thirds of boys worried they’d be made fun of it they played with the “wrong” toys. The move, first reported by The Guardian, means the world’s biggest toymaker will no longer label products “for girls” or “for boys,” and testing for new products won’t have a gender focus either. The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media conducted research that showed 71 percent of boys feared being ridiculed if they played with what researchers described as “girls’ toys,” and parents also shared that fear. “Parents are more worried that their sons will be teased than their daughters for playing with toys associated with the other gender,” said Madeline Di Nonno, chief executive of the Geena Davis Institute. Julia Goldin, the chief product and marketing officer at the Lego Group, said: “We’re working hard to make Lego more inclusive... Our job now is to encourage boys and girls who want to play with sets that may have traditionally been seen as ‘not for them.’”
