This is worse than the Bratz dolls

Wish I had something intelligent to say about this, but it numbs the brain ...

WTF will they think of next? And are these "fashion shows" open to the public? If they are, it's only a matter of time before the pedophiles wrangle their way in. I hope these businesses have a really high liability insurance policy. Gross, just gross.

Quote:
IMO, a purse is a very gendered article that signifies a lot. If this is just for dress up fun, that is one thing, but I am really bothered by the idea of little girls having to have "girl" things at such a young age and dressing up like adults in public settings like malls and pagents. It just seems like setting them up for a whole lot of expectations in regards to their sexulaity and orientation. I think three is a little young to even start thinking about that stuff.

I also think there is some sinister marketing going on and exposing such small children to all of the things they "need" to be pretty princesses does not seem right to me.

I actually think part of the reason why I am uncomfortable with 3 year olds having lip gloss (not chap stick) is b/c I went to a Catholic school where make up wasn't allowed until highschool. We were told that we were beautiful the way God made us and that we didn't need to grow up too fast by trying to look more attractive. Also, my mother only wears makeup on special occasions. I am the same way- and when I wear it, it is to look more attractive. I associate make up with looking attractive which is not something I think is appropriate for kids.

I don't like how sexualized a lot girl stuff has become and I guess the purse and lip gloss represent that to me. You are right that these things can be really innocent, I just got a bad feeling about the store and the mothers that were interviewed in the article.

uke Those Bratz dolls are bad,but they are plastic,kwim? These are real children being paraded dressed more revealing than some prostitutes. Wrong on so many levels...

This is in my area. Thank goodness DD has never been invited to one of those parties (it's nice to have crunchy friends )

One of her little girlfriends wanted a "manicure" party so the mom hired a few teenagers and bought washable nail polish. The teenage girls gave little manicures and they had a tea party with little tiaras afterward. (and they could take the tiaras home as their gift). It was sweet to see little girls dressing up in tiaras instead of Brittney Spears clothing.

This issue for me is more the rampant consumerism and materialism these little girls are being taught is OK. That's when I say WTF is wrong with these parents. But as a general rule I'm OK with dress-up and make-up and such, for the purpose of pretend play. I also would not object to my dds attending a party at a place like this, but I 1) wouldn't have THEIR party there and 2) wouldn't be shouting for them to shimmy and shake it from the sidelines and 3) wouldn't be calling her princess (or at least I'd teach her not to expect any prince charming IRL ). My older dd understands now that make-up is for in the house pretend-play, same with a bare belly shirt (she had a cheerleader costume for halloween, and she wore a long sleeve T under it). So, in a nutshell, I don't forbid these things, but I teach her my values about them.

swimswamswum, I agree about a purse being a gendered item, but in the case of my dd's, well, they just like them! I am about as big a tom-boy as ever there was, and I truly do not understand their fascination with purses and girly stuff at this age, but I'm not going to forbid these things either (nor do I buy them, they end up as gifts from family). My son has far fewer "boy" things than most little boys his age by virtue of the fact that he has 2 sisters, but he really is not interested in the purses or the baby dolls or the princess costumes. maybe this is for a different post, but I really think that boys and girls (in general, of course there are exceptions) are wired differently and like different things. Now, do I think it's appropriate to push this stuff on little girls? NO WAY. I completely agree with swimswamswum that it sets them up for unrealistic expectations about sexuality and reality.