http://news.yahoo.com/french-senate-votes-ban-child-beauty-pageants-090057171.html
I saw this article yesterday and it kind of shocked me, but then again, I was all for it. The French Senate has deemed mini-Miss pageants so harmful to young girls that they are making them illegal. Anyone who puts a girl younger than 16 years old into a beauty pageant will be put in prison. This might be a little bit extreme but it certainly says something about how harmful these pageants are. At such a young age, as young as 6, these girls are already being sexualized and are put in the mindset that beauty is only skin deep. In order to gain attention, be appreciated, or be considered important, you must have the right look, including make-up, high heels, and revealing clothing. It sends the wrong message and really affects these girls later in life. Though I have only seen clips of the show Toddlers and Tiaras, I can tell that these girls exposed to this ideal of beauty will grow up thinking that in order to be special, they most be portrayed in a sexual way. Some of these mini-Miss competitions have toned it down a bit by excluding make-up, heels, and swimsuits, so that's a step in the right direction. This amendment being passed in France states that it is "aimed at protecting children from danger and being prematurely forced into roles of seduction that harm their development." If this is not a wake-up call to these pageant moms, then I don't know what is.
I saw this too! I'm shocked but also impressed. When you look at these mini-Miss things, they make them look like they are 21 or older... which is twisted within itself.
ReplyDeleteSo one of my side addictions is Toddlers & Tiaras. Ashamed to admit it but true nonetheless. I find the outfits and standards to be ridiculous. It is interesting to see the different reasons given by both moms and daughters as to why they are in the pageants. Most moms it seems are trying to live through the daughter's adorableness and youth when they place them in these pageants. The daughters often say they participate because it makes their moms happy or because they like to play dress up. I also find it perverse to take something that a lot of children participate in (not just girls but boys and everyone really)like dress up and role play and hypersexualize it.
ReplyDeleteI think this is interesting. For me I think the issue of child pageants really comes down to the adults. How they dress the girls, dance routines, making them participate when they don't want to etc. The adults are the ones making the major decisions so in my opinion they are responsible for the damage that these pageants do.
ReplyDeleteBanning pageants is a good solution, maybe the best, but I do wonder if there are any young girls that honestly enjoy participating in pageants. There very well might be, and they're probably sadden by this ban. An option that I would of tried before banning pageants out right is making strict rules and regulations on things like dress codes, and talents, and participation that would make it hard for the parents to exploit or harm their children but still allow for girls that enjoy pageantry to continue to participate in a safe fun way.
When I first read your post my initial reaction was that this was a wonderful idea! Reading Ebony's comment made me rethink my initial thought. Maybe mini pageants wouldn't be so bad if the adults in charge didn't sexualize it so much? But then again, even if not sexualize it still tells these young kids that the biggest reason for them winning would be if they were judged to be the prettiest.. So I'm kind of torn on how I feel about this ban.. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAs a long-time French student and former France study abroad student, this is really interesting to me. I think I agree with Edina that pageants in and of themselves promote the idea that a child's worth is limited to their outward appearance. On the comparative political side of things, I find it interesting that this came out of France, who actually has a Ministry of the Rights of Women as part of their national government. Maybe we could take a note from them on this? :)
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