NJ Teen Wants Hasbro To Make Easy Bake Oven 'In Less Gender-Specific Colors'

GARFIELD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) --  A New Jersey family is taking on a classic toy, calling the marketing of the Easy Bake Oven "sexist."

That family has been inspired by their young son and his love of baking.

Erica Boscio's 4-year-old son Gavyn said he only wants two things for Christmas.

"I want a dinosaur and [an] Easy bake oven," he said.

LINK: See The Entire Petition Here

So Gavyn's big sister McKenna, 13, wants him to have both, but wishes the oven was offered in a color other than purple.

"Its girls coloration of purple and pink make it seem as though cooking is girly, which it is not by any means," McKenna Pope told CBS 2's Elise Finch.

"I think he would be embarrassed to play with it when his friends or his cousins are over," said Gavyn's mom, Erica Boscio.

The Easy Bake Oven first hit the market in 1963.

Boys have never been featured in the commercials or on the box. McKenna Pope thinks it's time for that to change. She started an online campaign at Change.org to get the Hasbro company to change its packaging.

"I urge you to include males on your packaging and feature your product in less gender-specific colors," she said.

McKenna Pope's online petition has 15,000 signatures and lots of real world support -- especially from men in the culinary community.

"It's still tied to that idea that this is a woman's role and this is a man's role, but it is something that needs to change. And it would be good, I guess, if they started to market to a more general audience," said Eric Meyerson, of the Institute of Culinary Education.

"If they like to cook, they should go for it. It's a career like anything else," said Pedro Ortiz-Mendez.

CBS 2's Finch even spoke with a psychologist who said if the ovens were actively marketed to boys, more would want them.

So far there no word on reaction from the manufacturer, but McKenna Pope said she'll keep at it until the toy is marketed to girls and boys.

Do you think Hasbro should change the colors of the Easy Bake Oven?  Share your thoughts in the comments section below...