MAKING A MAN | THE SCIENCE OF GENDER | GIRLS AT RISK SPECIAL ISSUE GENDER REVOLUTION ‘The best thing about being a girl is, now I don’t have to pretend to be a boy.’ JANUARY 2017 I CONTENTS JANUARY 2017 • VOL. 231 • NO. 1 • OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY THE GENDER ISSUE Can science help us navigate the shifting land- scape of gender identity? 0DQG\ EHORZ LGHQWLƃHV as IDşDIDƃQH a third gender in Samoa. 48 RETHINKING GENDER %\5RELQ0DUDQW]+HQLJ 3KRWRJUDSKVE\/\QQ-RKQVRQ | CONTENTS ELSEWHERE 30 | I AM NINE YEARS OLD 74 | MAKING A MAN TELEVISION GENDER REVOLUTION: 1DWLRQDO*HRJUDSKLF traveled to 80 In traditional cultures the path to man- A JOURNEY WITH homes on four continents to ask kids hood is marked with ceremonial rites of KATIE COURIC KRZJHQGHUDƂHFWVWKHLUOLYHV7KH passage. But in societies moving away answers from this diverse group of from strict gender roles, boys have to A look children were astute and revealing. ƃQGWKHLURZQZD\VWREHFRPHPHQ at how %\(YH&RQDQW %\&KLS%URZQ genetics, 3KRWRJUDSKVE\5RELQ+DPPRQG 3KRWRJUDSKVE\3HWH0XOOHU culture, and brain chemistry shape gender. February 6 at 8/7c on National Geographic. TELEVISION JOIN THE SAFARI Watch live as guides track Africa’s iconic animals on 6DIDUL/LYH a series premiering January 1 at 10/9c on Nat Geo WILD. 110 | AMERICAN GIRL 130 | DANGEROUS LIVES OF GIRLS The guides also will take In some ways it’s easier to be an Amer- In Sierra Leone, wracked by civil war and viewers’ questions via ican girl these days: Although beauty Ebola, nearly half of girls marry before Twitter at #SafariLive. still rules, people are more accepting of 18, and many become mothers by 19. GLƂHUHQFHV,QDQRWKHUZD\LWŠVZRUVH Yet even in this troubled land, some girls TELEVISION Everything plays out on social media. ƃQGDZD\WRULVH EXPLORER IS BACK %\7LQD5RVHQEHUJ %\$OH[LV2NHRZR Known for pioneering pro- 3KRWRJUDSKVE\.LWUD&DKDQD 3KRWRJUDSKVE\6WHSKDQLH6LQFODLU grams on science, nature, and culture, Explorer returns January 16 at 10/9c with new specials. BOOKS PICTURE PERFECT Travel to spectacular sites with :LOG%HDXWL- IXO3ODFHVavailable at VKRSQJFRPor wherever books are sold. 104 | DADS AT HOME 128 | GIRLS AT RISK 152 | EQUALITY On the Cover Youth interviewed for this issue on gender include More than in most nations, A by-the-numbers look Author Anne-Marie Avery Jackson, a transgender girl Sweden’s parental leave at how girls and women Slaughter urges us to aim living in Kansas City, Missouri. involves fathers. Photogra- around the world are for a world where gender 3KRWRE\5RELQ+DPPRQG pher Johan Bävman joined faring, from education to is neither an advantage &RUUHFWLRQVDQG&ODULƃFDWLRQV dads with their kids. equal opportunity. nor an impediment. Go to QJPFRPFRUUHFWLRQV KATIE COURIC PHOTO: GENARO MOLINA, /26$1*(/(67,0(6CONTOUR BY GETTY IMAGES ´ |FROM THE EDITOR | THE GENDER ISSUE WHAT IF ALL COULD THRIVE? All of us carry labels applied by others. The complimentary ones—“generous,” “funny,” “smart”—are worn with pride. The harsh ones can be lifelong burdens, indictments we try desperately to outrun. The most enduring label, and argu- ably the most influential, is the first one most of us got: “It’s a boy!” or “It’s a girl!” Though Sigmund Freud used the word “anatomy” in his famous axiom, in es- sence he meant that gender is destiny. Today that and other beliefs about gender are shifting rapidly and radically. That’s why we’re devoting this month’s issue to an exploration of gender—in science, in social systems, and in civi- lizations throughout history. As Robin Marantz Henig writes in our story on page 48, we are surrounded by “evolving notions about what it means to be a woman or a man and the meanings of transgender, cisgender, gender non- conforming, genderqueer, agender, or any of the more than 50 terms Facebook offers users for their profiles. At the same time, scientists are uncovering new com- plexities in the biological understanding of sex. Many of us learned in high school biology that sex chromosomes determine a baby’s sex, full stop: XX means it’s a that matter, ensure it). But let’s be clear: girl; XY means it’s a boy. But on occasion, In many places girls are uniquely at risk. XX and XY don’t tell the whole story.” At risk of being pulled out of school or For a future-facing perspective on doused with acid if they dare to attend. gender, we talked to 80 young people. At risk of genital mutilation, child mar- From the Americas to the Middle East, riage, sexual assault. Yes, youngsters from Africa to China, these keen and worldwide, irrespective of gender, face articulate observers bravely reflected challenges that have only grown in the our world back at us. digital age. But in telling these stories, Nasreen Sheikh, seen here, lives with we are reminded again how dangerous her parents and two siblings in a Mumbai girls’ lives can be—and how much work slum. She’d like to become a doctor, but lies ahead to change that. already she believes that being female is Thank you for reading National holding her back. “If I were a boy,” she Geographic. says, “I would have the chance to make money … and to wear good clothes.” I expect Nasreen will learn that gender alone doesn’t preclude a good life (or, for Susan Goldberg, Editor in Chief PHOTO: ROBIN HAMMOND PICTURE YOURSELF HERE. TRAVEL WITH NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC The National Geographic Sea Lion noses into Alaska’s Glacier Bay on our voyage to Alaska, British Columbia, and Haida Gwaii. From Alaska to Tanzania, discover magical places all over the world on a trip with National Geographic. Whether you travel on our fl eet or on a private expedition, by train or by hiking trail, you’ll explore legendary sites and secret treasures far off the beaten path in the company of top guides and experts. INCREDIBLE PLACES. ENGAGING EXPERTS. UNFORGETTABLE TRIPS. Call 1-888-966-8687 or visit natgeoexpeditions.com/ourtrips © 2016 National Geographic Partners. NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC EXPEDITIONS and the Yellow Border Design are trademarks of the National Geographic Society, used under license. We believe in the power of science, exploration, and storytelling to change the world. EDITOR IN CHIEF Susan Goldberg NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY DEPUTY EDITOR IN CHIEF: Jamie Shreeve. MANAGING EDITOR: David Brindley. 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