Furniture giant IKEA has shared they’ll be doing their part to tackle heteronormativity by updating their parking signs to show depictions of families that include same-gender parents.
So instead of always seeing a graphical depiction of a male and female character with a child, sometimes it will be two female parents, or two male parents.
The company has also announced it will be introducing more gender neutral bathrooms alongside its exiting male and female facilities, and staff will be able to include their pronouns on their name badges.
IKEA will mark International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia, and Transopbia (IDAHBOT) with their special rainbow striped shopping bags, and they’ll be flying the Black Lives Matter version of the Pride flag at their stores.
As to be expected, some people have not taken the announcement that the company is being inclusive of the LGBTIQ+ communities well. With claims breaking across social media and in the comments sections of news articles, saying the inclusive moves will lead to confusion and car-park accidents.
“Does this mean the parking spot can only be used by same-sex couples?” disgruntled people asked, alongside “What if I have two children?”. Elsewhere people who didn’t know the difference between and sexuality wailed that they were being discriminated against for being heterosexual. While in another comment thread single mothers complained that there had never been specific parking for one parent families.
In 2018 a British shopping centre changed it’s parking signage as part of an advertising campaign. The move lead to a 28 year man claiming it make parking stressful for him.
The advertising company behind the campaign noted that research had shown that 65% of British families do not fit into the traditional mold of husband, wife and children.
Britons being confused by non-traditional signs was nothing new.  Back in 2016 some visitors to London were perplexed when some crosswalk signals near Trafalgar Square featured same sex couples.
A visiting Lancashire man told The Sunday Express he was perplexed when he tried to cross the road and an image of two women appeared.
“When the light went green I saw the two female symbols and I thought, ‘Oh right, so my missus can cross with my little girl but what do me and the boy do?’ the man reportedly told the newspaper.
OIP Staff
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