I spotted something interesting in today’s paper.
A Dad writing about what a disaster it is when he tries to dress his baby daughter. But he’s obviously not aiming for success, with comments like: “if there’s one thing us blokes are sure to be worse at than the ladies it’s getting the kids dressed.”
And of course, the support from Mum: “Oh no. What’s daddy done to you” and “No. How ’bout something nice. Nana’s coming to stay”
With that kind of attitude, it’s no wonder he’s hopeless. And I wonder who buys the clothes in the first place? Maybe him? Nah.
His final comment is interesting: “[when she’s a teenager] …over my dead body will she be walking out that door wearing a mini skirt…”
Good luck to him, I say. If minis are still in fashion then, if she’s not walking out the door in one, she’ll be hitching up the waistband once she’s out of sight.
kids' couture
Maybe Dads need to get more involved in their daughter’s fashion choices, if Mums are the ones that are dressing them like mini adults, or worse still, mini sex symbols. The sexualisation of our pre-teen and even younger girls is becoming big business and a big issue. The photo at the top of the article shows a shot of a well-known NZ designer’s kids’ couture at the NZ fashion week a couple of years ago. The clothes generally look fun, though I’m not sure how kid-friendly that double-breasted coat is. But it’s the little girl on the right that worries me – she’s posing coquettishly and appears to be hitching up her skirt. To show a little leg, perhaps? So, why is a four, maybe five-year-old girl wanting to show some leg?
Julie Gale is an Australian comedian who started a campaign against the sexualisation of children, and the delivery of sexual imagery to children in the media, advertising and clothing. Her movement, Kids Free 2B Kids, is a lobby group against the corporations that are targeting our children, particularly girls, particularly in the 8-12 year age group, with messages like “spend lots of money to look sexy and you’ll be popular.” The message hasn’t changed greatly over the years, but the age of the target audience is getting increasingly younger. This is not only about sexualisation of girls, but the message that the only relationship between boys and girls can be of a sexual nature. The psychological fall-out of that is huge.
Tags: image and fashion, Kids Free 2B Kids, kids’ fashion, sexualisation of pre-teens, tweens