A rant about natural beauty, little girls and beauty pageants
I've recently been watching old episodes of 'Toddlers in Tiaras' and other programs such as 'Here Comes Honey Boo Boo' . Programs where mothers hire beauticians to cake there young daughters (from the ridiculous age of 2 years old) in fake tan and make-up. Some mothers even make their kids diet. This 'Honey Boo Boo' child, at 6 years old, thought she was getting fat. If I had a daughter and she started to say things about wanting to be thinner or 'prettier' , I'd tell her she is beautiful as she is. What any normal mother would do.
Honey Boo Boo's mother? "Lay off the chicken nuggets then" .
Obviously I would be careful what I feed my children, as I wouldn't want them to be unhealthy at such a young age. Honey Boo Boo is quite a podgy little girl but weren't we all at that age? And why? Because it didn't matter! We weren't going to get judged!
But when children see other children or even adult models in newspapers, magazines, the world of fashion, beauty pageants, the TV and compare themselves to their modified features via. Photoshop , there is a problem. There's adults that do it, there's teenagers that do it too. No one should do it. Everybody has a feature that makes them beautiful. Everybody is human. Everybody has red blood underneath. When the problems of insecurity hit such a premature age, it is disgusting. Nobody, no matter what age or gender, should be pressured by the mass media and these silly little competitions, should feel pressured to look a certain way.
I have never seen a 4 year old kicking and screaming to be in one of these American Beauty Pageants. In my own opinion I feel like it is parents inviting the children into the worst part of adulthood. I know when I was a kid all I wanted to be was a grown up but for so many different reasons. Going to the cinema with friends and being able to have sleepovers. Not be exposed to page 3 girls being presented as 'perfect'. That if you didn't have boobs or wear makeup you will end up alone. These mothers are trying to turn their daughters into something they're not. Children should be learning about natural beauty! They don't resemble children in these shows. They represent plastic dolls and Barbies and the sad thing is it isn't even there fault. There parents bring them in to this interest from the day they learn to walk.
More than half of the children I've seen in these television programs show no enthusiasm. There are tears when they're coaches tell them "they're not walking like a princess/model" . A child should choose their own identity. This whole concept of entering your child into a beauty pageant and being disapointed with her if she doesn't win is cruel. It can be scarring. Let children enjoy their youth instead of showing them the dark side of adulthood by being judged by their physical appearance.
Honey Boo Boo's mother? "Lay off the chicken nuggets then" .
Obviously I would be careful what I feed my children, as I wouldn't want them to be unhealthy at such a young age. Honey Boo Boo is quite a podgy little girl but weren't we all at that age? And why? Because it didn't matter! We weren't going to get judged!
But when children see other children or even adult models in newspapers, magazines, the world of fashion, beauty pageants, the TV and compare themselves to their modified features via. Photoshop , there is a problem. There's adults that do it, there's teenagers that do it too. No one should do it. Everybody has a feature that makes them beautiful. Everybody is human. Everybody has red blood underneath. When the problems of insecurity hit such a premature age, it is disgusting. Nobody, no matter what age or gender, should be pressured by the mass media and these silly little competitions, should feel pressured to look a certain way.
I have never seen a 4 year old kicking and screaming to be in one of these American Beauty Pageants. In my own opinion I feel like it is parents inviting the children into the worst part of adulthood. I know when I was a kid all I wanted to be was a grown up but for so many different reasons. Going to the cinema with friends and being able to have sleepovers. Not be exposed to page 3 girls being presented as 'perfect'. That if you didn't have boobs or wear makeup you will end up alone. These mothers are trying to turn their daughters into something they're not. Children should be learning about natural beauty! They don't resemble children in these shows. They represent plastic dolls and Barbies and the sad thing is it isn't even there fault. There parents bring them in to this interest from the day they learn to walk.
More than half of the children I've seen in these television programs show no enthusiasm. There are tears when they're coaches tell them "they're not walking like a princess/model" . A child should choose their own identity. This whole concept of entering your child into a beauty pageant and being disapointed with her if she doesn't win is cruel. It can be scarring. Let children enjoy their youth instead of showing them the dark side of adulthood by being judged by their physical appearance.
love this liv! totally agree, some parents are pretty fucked up! some of these toddlers are wearing fake boobs and stuff and told they need to have a certain body type to be pretty.. and this is shown on tv like it's totally okay to sexualise and totally objectify little girls? it begins to normalize the expectation of little girls' appearances not to mention it's a total pedo magnet, not cool
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