Too-young girl models too-small bikini

by Jenifer Scharpen (Subscribe to Jenifer Scharpen's posts) Oct 23rd 2006 11:02AM

Anne Metz at Styledash wrote about the recent show by designer Ashley Paige that featured a ten-year-old in an itsy-bitsy-perhaps-pink-but-who-can-see-enough-of-it-to-really-tell bikini. The designer's response to her critics was said to be, "I think the women who like my stuff. . . exude sexuality."

What am I not getting here? How does what the women who like her stuff exude make it okay to let this young child be sexualized? Some of the critics were quoted as being concerned about the girl being around the other models, who were practically naked, because they they felt that would be unhealthy for her. Personally, I don't think it's so bad for kids to see naked bodies (we all have one, after all) but I do worry about the wisdom of having a girl so very, very far from being a woman cruise down the catwalk in this ridiculously skimpy suit.

I just cannot think of a good reason for it, or one good thing that could come from it.

What do you think?

Comments (10)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

dreadmouse 10-23-2006 @ 5:36PM

I think that somebody needs to give that designer a good shake. Ten-year old girls really shouldn't be "exuding sexuality." There are enough issues with teen and adult models these days; the last thing we need is to spread the problem to ever-younger children.

Heather 10-23-2006 @ 11:28AM

Isn't that consider child porn in most places? And illegal!

anonny 10-23-2006 @ 11:43AM

It's all about context. The designer saying, "I think the women who like my stuff exude sexuality," and then putting a 10 year old in that bathing suit, amounts to the hypersexualization of that 10 year old.

I don't know if young kids in bikinis bothers me that much. I put my 4 year old in one and she looks adorable - not at all sexualized. That said, the bikini has more to it than this little number.

Christine 10-23-2006 @ 11:47AM

I think that the sexuality of it is in the eye of the one crying foul.

Yes, it is skimpy... but chances are the girl just thinks its a cool swim suit. I'd prefer to see the top with different bottoms and the bottoms with a different top.

Poo-poo on the designer for making a ridiculous swimsuit for a younger girl... but not for sexuality.

LB 10-23-2006 @ 12:33PM

Well she didn't answer the core of the question..she talked about women, not girls, so??? what's her answer? Does she have one?

If you have to show your clothing on a child to make it look good the design must stink.I checked out her website and she looks totally vapid.

feh-

Christina 10-23-2006 @ 12:40PM

I'm apalled. What kind of message are we sending our kids? Kids need to be kids, not sexy.

Jessica 10-23-2006 @ 1:01PM

I'm apalled. What kind of message are we sending our kids? Kids need to be kids, not sexy.

DITTO!!!!!

Amy 10-23-2006 @ 1:32PM

That little girl is someday going to look back on this incident and be very upset that her mother and father let some woman dress her up like that. How embarrassing for her.

VL 10-23-2006 @ 1:54PM

I don't have a problem with kids wearing bikinis, I think they can be cute. But look at that girl! If you took a half inch off that swimsuit, you would surely see nipples and vagina. That is ridiculous. And young girls do not belong in a show designed to "exude sexuality." I also doubt that the exotic features of this girl are coincedental.

Marsha 10-23-2006 @ 11:46PM

It does seem like a little girl before puberty is the ideal of beauty in this country. Before she gets any curves or hair, so many women seem to be trying to recapture this look.

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