Emily Ratajkowski Announced Her Pregnancy With an Essay on Gender and Parenthood

• Emily Ratajkowski is expecting her first child with husband Sebastian Bear-McClard.
• Ratajkowski announced the news with an essay in Vogue, in which she reflected on gender and parenthood.
• "I don’t like that we force gender-based preconceptions onto people, let alone babies. I want to be a parent who allows my child to show themself to me," Ratajkowski wrote.

Emily Ratajkowski is pregnant with her first child! She announced the news with an essay (opens in new tab) in Vogue on gender and parenthood, accompanied by a pregnancy shoot and short film (opens in new tab). Ratajkowski explained why she and husband Sebastian Bear-McClard won't announce their child's gender, and reflected on her apprehensions about raising a girl or a boy.

"When my husband and I tell friends that I’m pregnant, their first question after "Congratulations" is almost always "Do you know what you want?" We like to respond that we won’t know the gender until our child is 18 and that they’ll let us know then. Everyone laughs at this," Ratajkowski wrote.

"There is a truth to our line, though, one that hints at possibilities that are much more complex than whatever genitalia our child might be born with: the truth that we ultimately have no idea who—rather than what—is growing inside my belly. Who will this person be? What kind of person will we become parents to? How will they change our lives and who we are?" she continued. "I don’t like that we force gender-based preconceptions onto people, let alone babies. I want to be a parent who allows my child to show themself to me."

Ratajkowski shared her fears of passing on internalized misogyny to a potential daughter, recounting her own "early understanding" of "how beauty could equate to power." She also addressed her concerns about raising a boy, writing, "I’m terrified of inadvertently cultivating the carelessness and the lack of awareness that are so convenient for men."

"I’m completely and undeniably helpless when it comes to almost everything surrounding my pregnancy: how my body will change, who my child will be," Ratajkowski concluded. "But I’m surprisingly unbothered. Instead of feeling afraid, I feel a new sense of peace. I’m already learning from this person inside my body. I’m full of wonder."