Mom slams husband over his gender-based parenting rules: ‘He needs to be called out’

A woman is furious with her husband because he won’t let her daughter do “traditionally male activities.” 

She shared the issue on Reddit’s “Am I the A******? (AITA)” forum. Her daughter isn’t “ladylike” enough for her husband. When the teen asked if she could help her dad and brother with home renovations, the father refused. He said his daughter’s future husband would know how to do these things. 

“My 14-year-old daughter has always been a tomboy and prefers doing traditionally male activities,” the mom explained. “She likes skiing, hockey, hiking and video games. It’s been a pain point between her and her father (my husband). He wants her to be more ladylike, and she does things to intentionally piss him off, like refusing to wear dresses or going to a sleepover and coming back with a short haircut.”

“My husband and my son are starting to renovate the house, and my daughter asked to join. My husband is absolutely against it, saying she could overstrain herself or get hurt. She’s already taken woodworking in her classes, and she’s more responsible than my son. If anyone is losing a digit from the saw, it’s more likely him. I argued with my husband, telling him she will probably be a homeowner one day and knowing how to do basic things around the house is important.”

The mom tried to convince her husband that their daughter needed to have these life skills. 

“He argues she will have her husband to do all those things,” she wrote. “I got angry because my dad was the same way. He was a mechanic but didn’t teach me anything about cars because my husband/bf would do it for me, and girls don’t need to know it. Guess who got stuck with a flat tire and no data in the middle of the woods?”

“A 19-year-old me, and it sucked. I put my foot down and forced him to include our daughter, teaching her how to change a ceiling light and use basic tools. He maintains it’s not necessary to teach her how to do these things, and she is making them slower on finishing the house, and I’d rather they be slow and teach her, and it’s not like they are in a rush.”

Redditors sided with the mom on this. 

“Your husband is sexist. He needs to be called out, and his views need to be challenged if he wants to have any kind of positive relationship with his daughter going forward,” someone commented

“Basic life tasks aren’t gendered,” another wrote

“It is absolutely necessary to teach basic tool use and home repair,” a person said

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