Confronting Gender Anxiety

By Caryl Rivers & Rosalind C. Barnett

As their children head back to school, the question of gender is on the minds of many parents. Why? Recent—and widely circulated—news stories have focused on individuals and schools grappling with the question of gender stereotypes.

This past spring, a Toronto couple trying to raise a “genderless” child became a media sensation. Kathy Witterick, 38, and David Stocker, 39, refused to reveal whether their 4-month-old baby, Storm, is male or female. They say they want their child to avoid society’s rigid gender norms.

Meanwhile, in Sweden, the Egalia preschool has banished the words “girl” and “boy,” and the 33 kids are addressed as “friends.” In the same spirit, the school forgoes the words “him” and “her”—”han” or “hon” in Swedish—replacing them with a newly minted Swedish...