Post #4 - Clothing For Young Girls Too Sexualised

This post is mainly about young girls. I have found numerous articles online that all have the same theme: Clothes for young girls is just too sexualised.

It's something that many people accept as part of society, and never really think about. The way young girls are dressing is totally inappropriate for their age. Have you seen some of the stuff in stores lately?

Does this seem acceptable to you?
Image courtesy of feminspire.com

Bikinis on children barely in primary school. Bikinis on babies. Is this acceptable? Personally, the photo above seems more like child porn than fashionable clothing, but this may be just me. Do you find it acceptable?

Believe me, this isn't the worst kind of kids 'fashion' that I've seen. While researching for this post, I came across two images that really disturbed me.

Poor kids don't even know what this means.

Disgusting. Would you let your child wear this?

I highly doubt I am the only one who finds this kind of attire entirely inappropriate for children.

A quote from Professor Handsley, President of the Australian Council of Children and the Media: "It tends to go straight from Barbie and Dora the Explorer to Pretty Woman."

Her comment was in regards to a post a woman made on major retailer Target's Facebook page, about their clothes making girls "look like tramps." The post garnered over 60,000 votes in the space of a few days, causing the idea of a boycott of retailers that sell clothes like these to arise.

Here's something that horrifies me: "The realisation that  “children grow up fast these days” seems to be accepted by most parents."

I find this ridiculous. I am not a parent, but even non-parents can agree that this clothing is ridiculous and horrifying.

"It all began when industry created and publicised the idea of tween."

Yep, this I agree with. When I was a kid, there was no such thing as a 'tween', or a 'tweenager'. I only learned about this fad when I was a 'tween' myself, yet neither of my parents knew what that was at the time. Nowadays, it is an accepted part of society. The fashion industry has created this new 'stage' of life, and seem to be trying to turn children into streetwalkers (Ok, maybe that's a bit harsh).

But the range of clothing available out there for young girls should be entirely unacceptable. Bikinis, clothes with sexual messages on them...it's just not done. I can't believe that some parents find this kind of clothing ok for their children to wear.

Miley Cyrus' little sister Noah (left) modelling clothing meant for twenty year olds.

Here's something else that will shock you:

Sexualised Baby Clothes

Yes, you read right. Clothes for babies now have sexualised messages on them. It seems that society is deeming it acceptable for babies and toddlers to wear this kind of clothing now.

References:
1. Force, T. (2012, August 28). Why Children Grow Up So Fast….And What Parents Can Do…. | MUMMedia | Parenting & Popular Culture |. Retrieved from http://www.mummedia.net/2012/08/why-children-grow-up-so-fast-and-what-parents-can-do/

2. Prideaux, K., & Ralston, N. (2012, August 14). Target clothes make girls 'look like tramps' | Newcastle Herald. Retrieved from http://www.theherald.com.au/story/269427/target-clothes-make-girls-look-like-tramps/

3. Spicer, S. (n.d.). Are tweens growing up too fast? - Lifestyle - MSN CA. Retrieved May 11, 2013, from http://lifestyle.ca.msn.com/family-parenting/ages-stages/rogers-article.aspx?cp-documentid=22426173

Post #3 - Another View: Kids Aren't Growing Up Fast Enough

So while I was researching some links to support my argument that kids are growing up too fast, I came across an article that explores both sides of the argument. The person who wrote the article had actually come across two articles that contradicted each other: One by the New York Times, and the other by the Washington Post.

I found this opposing view interesting. In my personal opinion, I think kids are growing up too fast. I see it everyday, on Facebook, driving past my old school, in my eldest cousins two daughters, my other cousins two eldest sons... But this opposing view is another interesting angle for me to consider.

The opposing point of view states that children aren't growing up fast enough.

Do I agree? No. I am firmly on the side that argues children are growing up too fast. I have seen it with my own eyes.

This article explores the time a 41 year old woman moved back in with her parents.

Is this a child not growing up fast enough?

No. The woman in question, Felicia Brown, is an adult, owns her own house, and until March 20, 2009, had a good job. The reason she moved back in with her parents? She got fired.

I disagree with this article entirely. The headline and the angle they take in this article makes it seem as if she moved home because she wanted to. Well, she didn't, not entirely. She just had no other option. She had no job, and no way of continuing her mortgage payments.

This article is based on entirely circumstantial evidence, and as such, cannot be a reliable source for the claim that kid's aren't growing up fast enough.



Referencing:
1. Lloyd, D. (n.d.). Reaching Adulthood: Are Kids Growing Up Too Fast or Too Slow? | RealDelia. Retrieved May 2009, from http://realdelia.com/2009/05/reaching-adulthood-are-kids-growing-up-too-fast-or-too-slow/

2. Belkin, L. (2009, May 4). Growing Up Too Fast? - NYTimes.com. Retrieved from http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/04/growing-up-too-fast/

3. Trejos, N. (2009, April 26). Back Home to Roost. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/25/AR2009042500110.html

Post #2 - Stress: Why Some Children WANT To Grow Up

So I was reading an article on expertscolumn.com, by someone named Michelle06. She is debating the whole idea that children want to grow up, all because of stress.

She does make some points that I agree with. "Going to school has always been a stressful experience". I can really relate to this statement. In school, there is a constant desire to fit in. If you don't fit in, you feel stressed, alone, and like you can't cope. There is also the pressure to get the best grades, be the best student, prove something to teachers, parents and total strangers. Pressure = stress.

I remember when I was younger, I couldn't wait to grow up. Primary school was possibly the most stressful time of my life. I thought growing up would fix that, relieve all the stress of childhood.

It doesn't.

High School is just the same, except with the added pressure of deciding what you want to do for the rest of your life, and making sure you meet the minimum requirements to do that. There's the pressure of taking the right subjects, choosing the right university course, making sure you meet the minimum requirements of your chosen course.

Then the pressure of getting the best grades and fitting in starts all over again at university.

But why is it like this? Children should not be feeling pressured like this. Childhood is supposed to be enjoyable, a time to make friends, learn the ways of life and have a good time before being thrust into the working world.

Another probable contributor to the stress of childhood is peer pressure. "Little girls don't want to be seen to play with their dolls when all their friends are wearing make-up". True enough. When I was younger, what my friends did influenced me a lot. If my friends rolled down the hill, I joined in. If my friends went down to the field and hid from the teachers and skipped class, I'd hide too. I knew it was wrong, but my friends were doing it, so it had to be cool, right?

So really, if stress is a factor in kids behaving the way they are, what are we doing to stop it? Are we doing anything at all? Or are we so desensitized to it that we just accept it as part of society?



Referencing
1. Michelle06 (2011, October 6). Are children growing up too quickly these days?. Retrieved from http://expertscolumn.com/content/are-children-growing-too-quickly-these-days

Post #1 - My Beef With Technology

There's one thing in the world that really makes me sad. What is it? It's the lack of childhood for kids these days. I live in a predominantly child-based neighbourhood, as I have all my life, and I've watched it go from being filled with kids wandering the streets and visiting their friends, to the streets being emptied of kids - excluding before and after school of course.

I've been wondering why. Why are kids not playing outside? Why does the neighbourhood now seem like an adult only neighbourhood?

It's the lack of childhood kids these days are having.

Now, I'm going to have to compare my childhood to the ones children have nowadays so I can truly show you what I mean.

When I was young, I played outside with my friends. We'd visit each other's houses, ride our bikes around the neighbourhood, wander down to the beach to play at the park or go exploring, and we'd sell feijoas or lemons on the side of the road to earn a bit of extra pocket money.

Kids these days don't do that. Now, it's all technology. Kids can find their friends online, text them, facebook them, tweet them even. There's no need to walk over to your friends house to see if they want to come over and play. Kids can just text their friends and get a reply almost instantly.

I guess my issue is not just with technology though. It's the age children are given the technology.

I know a young boy who has a cellphone, and he was given it when he was eight. His younger brother uses their mother's phone - the younger brother began using it when he was three. I was given my first cellphone at the age of eleven or twelve (I can't really remember). Even then, it took months of pestering my parents, arguing that I needed one in case of emergencies. It was only when I started doing road patrol at primary school that they finally gave in.

Toddler with iPod.

Schools adding iPads to the list of stationary also make me confused. Why on earth would you put and iPad on a primary school stationary list? It doesn't make sense.

If they need to do art, they can use crayons and paper. I did. There's no need to use an art app.

If they need to do some writing, they can use a pencil and an exercise book. If kids are encouraged to use keyboards, what's going to happen if the battery dies in their fancy iPad? Without learning to use a pen or pencil, we may lose the skill of handwriting.

Now, I'm not saying having technology is bad. It's actually a good thing. We are more connected than ever by Facebook, Google+, Twitter and all those other social networking sites. We have all the information we could possibly want, right at our fingertips, thanks to Wikipedia. I never had that when I started school, but I wish I did.

And yes, there are more pro's to the Modern Technology and Kids debate. It helps them develop essential motor skills late in life. But what ever happened to using toys? My generation played with building blocks, and we developed our motor skills just fine. Learning to read? We had our parents, or when they were busy, we had the Leapfrog LeapPad electronic toy to help.

Leapfrog LeapPad

Personally I feel like kids these days have no childhood, but I guess part of me is just sad to see every toy I played with as a kid being displayed in a museum (no joke, there's a whole glass display of toys I used to play with). There are pro's and con's to the modern childhood, but I guess it's the same with every childhood. My parents probably thought I had no childhood, compared to theirs.

By the by, we just have to accept that kids as young as three years old are playing with iPhones and iPads, and perhaps missing out on things that once made childhood fun.

What are your thoughts?

Post #0 - Links To Read & Formulate Argument On

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Kids These Days Are Growing Up Too Fast

Mentally Young? http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/are-children-growing-up-too-fast-these-days/question-3623163/?page=1&postId=106801155#post_106801155&link=ibaf&q=&esrc=s

- Sexualised Clothing in Media and Stores http://www.mummedia.net/2012/08/why-children-grow-up-so-fast-and-what-parents-can-do/

Childhood is Stressful and Kids Want To Grow Up Faster http://expertscolumn.com/content/are-children-growing-too-quickly-these-days

Reasons Why Children May Be Growing Up Too Fast http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/7309/parenting/are_your_children_growing_up_too_fast.html

Eternally Adolescent or Prematurely Old? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-morford/kids-these-days-growing-u_b_614431.html

Condoms in Junior Schools http://idebate.org/debatabase/debates/education/house-would-distribute-condoms-schools-junior

*Nigel Latta*

Tweens Being Treated Like Teens http://lifestyle.ca.msn.com/family-parenting/ages-stages/rogers-article.aspx?cp-documentid=22426173

Are Kids Growing Up Too Fast or Too Slow? http://realdelia.com/2009/05/reaching-adulthood-are-kids-growing-up-too-fast-or-too-slow/

Pressures of Modern World Are Eroding Childhood http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2041347/Modern-life-making-children-grow-fast.html