I know that this post is meant merely to point at these kids and say “Aww, how cute”, but there is something more insidious at work here than childlike play.
America has a problem with its depiction of the sexual nature of humanity. It claims an awfully restrictive and frankly puritanical view of sex as its portrayed in the media, yet our advertising is full of allusions to sexual behavior. We claim to want to protect our children from losing their innocence at an early age, then we turn around and dress our kids up like these photos display. In fact, a whole industry is based around the sexualization of children: the childhood beauty pageant.
When you get a chance, rent “Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen” to see some examples of what I’m talking about. This country excels in hypocrisy, publicly stating one viewpoint, then committing another behind closed doors. Or even out in the open, as in this case. There is nothing “cute” or “adorable” about dressing pre-pubescent girls up as adults and teaching them how to act sexy for the camera.
Look at the girls in these photos: wearing makeup, standing in “innocent” poses, wearing outfits that would be scandalous on an adult — and we complain that the rate of pregnancy among pre-teens is higher than ever? There is something deeply wrong going on here.
By prepping children to value the opinions of others as significant based on their physical appearance, we’re leading upcoming generations down the road to lives of constant yearning after always-retreating fame and glory. We should be emphasizing hard work, kindness, and intelligence, and a culture that defines itself as a body of free thinking beings. There may be no way to turn this thing around, but parents, please: do right by your kids and teach them that they can be more than just pretty faces.
