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    Women With Brothers Are Revealing How Their Parents Treated Them Differently As Kids — Just Because They Were Girls

    "My dad caught my brother having sex and congratulated him, but he saw me kiss a boy and didn’t speak to me for a week."

    For many women, growing up with brothers (and getting treated unfairly as a result) is an experience that's all too relatable. A recent clip from the podcast The Comment Section with Drew Afualo popped up on my TikTok For You page, where Drew and her guest were discussing their experiences having brothers and how it seemed like their brothers could do no wrong in their parents' eyes.

    The Comment Section With Drew Afualo Podcast / Via tiktok.com

    People in the comments had a lot to say, so we decided to ask the women of the BuzzFeed Community to share their own "that's so unfair" moments when their parents treated them differently than their brothers — and let's just say some of these stories will have you like this:

    1. "I am the only girl in the middle of two brothers. The biggest unfair moment I remember clearly is the rule of 'no boys in my room with the door shut.' Both of my brothers had girls in their rooms, and both ended up teen parents."

    Closed bedroom door

    2. "Every diet my parents went on, my sister and I had to join, but our older brothers didn’t because they were 'growing boys.' It wasn’t intentional, but it isn’t surprising that my sister and I both developed disordered eating habits and, at times, eating disorders."

    —2dabdeb

    3. "My dad paid for my brother's first tattoos at 16 but wouldn't pay for mine because 'I'm a girl' and it's 'different for me.'"

    Tattoo artist tattooing an arm

    4. "After I graduated college and got my first job, I began paying my own rent. I never asked my parents for help because I knew they were struggling, too. A year after my brother graduated and got a job (where he made more than me), I learned my parents were still paying for his rent and giving him money every month. I also learned that during college, they sent him twice as much money as they sent me. I confronted them about this because I was forced to eat bare crackers once or twice while at school and never could afford to go anywhere. They said it was because he was a boy so he had to pay for the girls' tab when he went out clubbing, so he needed more money. It took me years to forgive them for even saying that crap out loud."

    —j1z1

    5. "My older brother's interests were always taken seriously, but mine were always seen as a joke and were 'cute.' He never had to attend any of my recitals, but I was expected to go to all of his games."

    Young boys playing in a soccer game

    6. "Nothing was fair as far as how I was treated versus how my older brothers were treated. But I would say overall, it was hard because I’m an adopted Black woman, and my brothers and adoptive parents are both white. My parents often would 'joke' about how girls are more 'drama,' making them harder to raise than boys. My parents would constantly remind me how hard I was to raise as a young Black girl, because of my 'attitude' and my 'flare for dramatics.'"

    7. "My mom let my older brother start playing sports when he was 4, but she would never let me play. She said, and I quote, 'Girls don't play sports because girls aren't supposed to sweat.'"

    8. "My brother and I both met potential dates over the internet. Mine was a guy I'd actually talked to over the phone a couple of times. His was a girl he met over gaming, but he never talked to her besides texting. When I told my parents about my romantic interest, they said it was a bad idea to keep talking to him. When my brother told them, they took the car we shared and drove him eight hours out of state to meet her."

    —Anonymous

    9. "My parents bought my brother all the IKEA furniture he needed for his studio apartment, and a year later, they questioned buying me a table for my studio apartment."

    Fully furnished apartment with a couch, TV, and coffee table

    10. "My brother, who is a year older than me, was allowed to date a girl two years younger than him, and my parents gave him the car and hockey tickets to take her out on dates. When I started dating someone two years older than me, I was told I wasn’t allowed to see him and that he must be taking advantage of me."

    —Anonymous

    11. "When my mom would get home from work, she would yell at her daughters about why the house wasn’t clean, but never once did she go after her sons for the messy house. Her justification was that they have other responsibilities such as the yard, which was odd because they never did the yard...she did."

    12. "I love my brother, but growing up beside him was sad. He’s two years younger than me, but my father bought him a bike, his own TV set, his own bed, and his own desk, while I had to watch how he enjoyed those things. I never got a bike, my own TV set, or my own bed until I bought them for myself."

    —Anonymous

    13. "My brothers were given larger portions of food than me and allowed to have second helpings, but I wasn’t. My parents would even hide the good snacks and tell my brothers where they were but not me."

    Brother and sister eating dinner together

    14. "I happened to be a middle child of five and the only girl. I am currently 23, and I am not allowed out past 10 p.m. with people my parents have not met. My brother, who is 17, for spring break drove from Florida to California unsupervised with his friends."

    —Anonymous

    15. "My parents decided that their two daughters had to buy their own cars. When my brother needed a car, my parents bought an extra car for him to use."

    Red car parked on the steet

    16. "I have two older brothers, and I’m the only girl. They would often walk around in only their boxers. One summer, I was maybe 14, and I walked from the garage to my room in shorts and a sports bra and was told that was 'inappropriate' and that I needed to wear a shirt. That one stood out the most to me and bothered me so much!"

    —Anonymous

    17. "My parents tolerated my brother talking back, raising his voice, and swearing at them during arguments. If I responded even remotely annoyed when I was in trouble, I was grounded immediately."

    18. "I was never allowed to sit in the front seat of the car if my brother was there because 'he was a boy and I was a girl.'"

    —Anonymous

    19. "We didn't have a lot of money growing up, so our grandparents would pay for our school trips. Whilst my brothers just had their trips paid for, I had to work for the money by helping my grandmother with housework."

    Young girl learning to sweep with her mother's help

    20. "Whenever my two younger brothers would make fun of me or my friends, I was told 'they're just being boys' and I should get over it, yet if I'd say one mean thing to them, I would get in trouble."

    —Anonymous

    21. "My dad always bugged me about learning how to cook. I know the basics and can make a decent meal, but I really just don't enjoy cooking. I have three older sisters and one older brother. All my sisters know how to cook, but my brother can barely light a stove. When I asked my dad why he didn't badger my brother about learning how to cook, he said, 'Don't be stupid, he doesn't need to learn, he's a boy. You'll need to learn to 'catch a husband.'"

    Two young girls cooking in the kitchen

    22. "I was in sixth grade, and my brother is three years older than me. My family was over for a gathering, and we were playing pool in the basement. My brother got angry I was using his pool stick, and out of nowhere, he ran across the room and tackled me. My mother forced my brother to apologize to me, but there was no punishment, no grounding, no real consequences. Understandably, I was upset I had been attacked, and the worst he got was having to apologize. I did not accept his apology, and I got grounded for it."

    —Anonymous

    23. And last but not least, "One that sticks out the most is when my dad caught my brother having sex and congratulated him, but he saw me kiss a boy and didn’t speak to me for a week."

    Are you a woman with a brother that experienced any unfair treatment from your parents? Let us know in the comments.

    Submissions may have been edited for length/clarity.