In Here’s Why Salads Feel Feminine and Nachos Seem Manly, does Tanya Basu present enough evidence to prove this statement?

In Here’s Why Salads Feel Feminine and Nachos Seem Manly, does Tanya Basu present enough evidence to prove this statement? Explain why or why not. Why should we stop focusing on gender in a time of transgender, nonagenarian, and gender fluid people?
I chose this article for a couple reasons: First, I’m a trans man and the conversation about inclusivity, visibility and representation in advertising is important to me (even if it means they’ll get more of my money!). Second, I love thinking about the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior.
While Tanya Basu’s Here’s Why Salads Feel Feminine and Nachos Seem Manly is a fascinating read, I don’t think she presented enough evidence to prove this statement. In this class, I’ve learned that the key to writing a compelling and well-researched argument piece is, well, research. The study Basu cites is convincing, but it’s one study. She references that there’s more to support the theory by saying, “study after study has shown that sociocultural influences affect food choices between men and women” (Basu, 2015), but are we supposed to just take her word for it? One must assume that their readers are critical thinkers and factfinders, else be accused of bias, lazy investigating, or pandering. If Tanya Basu wrote this piece for our class, I think Dr. Trish would ding her for not citing enough sources to support her argument and for not providing at least one source presenting an opposing view.
For the record, I do believe that gendered marketing is effective insofar as it plays into subconscious gender stereotypes that we’re all primed to accept. The concepts of “male” and “female” characteristics are so deeply embedded in our brains that it affects what we buy and how we respond to what we buy. To clarify, I don’t mean we’re born with boy brains or girl brains, but rather that we’re conditioned over time to believe that we possess one or the other.
The debate over biological gender versus socialized gender is ongoing, but I feel strongly that we can nurture ourselves away from such minimizing stereotypes. Advertisers have been successful using gender targeted ads in the past, but I don’t think they’ll get away with it in the future. Increasingly, millennials and Gen Z’ers are identifying as trans and non-binary. Folks want to be respected for who they are in society, and that includes wanting to see themselves represented in brands and marketing. The cultural shift away from the gender binary is not only happening among trans and non-binary folks – female and male identified folks won’t continue to accept old-fashioned stereotypes, either. I can’t see future generations of Female-identified people supporting brands that only push them pink razors and household cleaning products, nor can I see future generations of male-identified folks buying products that capitalize off preserving toxic masculinity. Furthermore, many families now are raising their kids outside of rigid gender roles. They won’t buy from companies that tell their kids trucks are only for boys and dolls are only for girls.
I can’t predict whether brands will embrace the cultural and ideological shifts happening in society on a core-level, but I can predict that they’ll want to keep making money. Savvy consumers want to align themselves with brands that show an understanding of modern values. That means shedding gender-based approaches and embracing gender-inclusivity and diversity in marketing. The future of advertising is non-binary because future generations will be.

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