The Problem with Blue Tax
I have known since the inception of Blue Tax that there was a problem. But, I ran with it because as a cis woman I thought, hell yeh, I want men to pay a blue tax that fights the patriarchy.
In my mind and heart, fighting the patriarchy means realizing equity for all gender identities, but there was always a pit in my gut. I knew my intentions were good, but I was doing this within the oppressive construct of pink and blue which perpetuates the gender binary myth. This myth doesn't allow for gender diversity and hurts people.
It’s time to say bye bye binary. I want kids to know they can grow into whoever feels like their best self. And, I want all these best self adults to be safe, seen, heard, respected, and celebrated for the gifts they bring into the world.
There is another problem with Blue Tax. Most of the customers are women. Like me, they think, hell yeh, I want to support a business that’s fighting the patriarchy.
But, women already pay the pink tax which costs them an extra $1351 per year and they get paid $.82 for every $1.00 men make. Women make less and pay more. There is no way they should be paying a blue tax too.
When I find a problem, I get curious about potential solutions, and here is my solution to the Blue Tax problem:
Drum roll please…introducing Omni. For everybody, anybody, omnibody.
Many Blue Tax products will be moved over to the Omni brand. Omni will be a wholly gender inclusive line of products intended for all bodies. It will celebrate the expansive possibilities of all our human identities. And there will be no extra tax. Problem solved.
Change never happens as quickly as we would like, and the move to Omni will not happen overnight. But, it has begun. Omni products can be found on the shelves at Adeline Inc. Salon, as a special salon exclusive and will be available online in 2023.
Image credit: Check out this book written by Eric Geron and illustrated by Charlene Chua.