Honey, I Pimped the Kids!
Maclean's just provided Canada with an article called "Why do we dress our daughters like skanks?" Um, good question. I hope some parents get a quick smack upside the head with it. I really do. Because it's about time!
We're living in a strange era. A (growing) number of things are given greater importance and less value. Freedom. Sex. In this case, childhood. I just went to Blood Diamond (worth a review -- I'll get to it), and there were kids in the theatre, as young as ten. A movie that in part depicts the African "child warlord" with the bloody awful things that accompany it (it spared the audience witnessing actual rape, but there were brutal threats and other references to it, and there's no illusions in any adult's mind about what's going on with the women in the war camps). What's that going to do to a Canadian kid? Any kid? I don't know. But it's not a social experiment I wish to engage in. I'm not saying we need to start enforcing prudishness or ingorance. But if kids get desensitised to violence at 10, then what? Blood Diamond claims to be fictional, but its reality is being acted out every day -- it's not even possible to pass it off as mere fantasy. But does the fantasy excuse work for 5-7-year-olds watching Pirates of the Carribean? Or the 2-and-4-year-olds exposed to the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy? Hello? What are those parents thinking? Let's go another way -- perhaps more of what you were expecting with the title of the post.
There has been much made of the eroticised (pre)teen for my entire lifetime. Realistically the argument probably started with Frank Sinatra's "bobby-soxers". Only recently, the balance of power has switched. Critical mass is now firmly on the skanky side. But I can't really put my finger on why. What switch goes off in a parent's mind that says it's a good idea to either actively or passively engage in the sexualisation of their children? Is this just the ultimate expression of youth-obsessed culture? (Or will SNL's diaper-thong skit prove prophetic?) Or does it perhaps go along with the commodification of the word "pimp": a hot kid is the ultimate fasion accessory for the suburban-SUV lifestyle? Whatever it is, it's pretty gross.
Children and childhood are not symbols to be wrapped up, commodified and sold in malls. Well, that's not entirely true. They are. But they shouldn't be. As adults, this is our responsibility. This means protecting kids when they need it. Preparing them for the stuff of life (e.g. they're unique and special, but aren't the centre of the universe). And when they're ready for it, pushing them out of the nest. I'm seeing parents everywhere neglecting their responsibilities in each area. It's time to stop and step up!
Hey, I'm part of this whole global-village-raising-a-child thing. And my stake is the condition of the world when I leave it, and my responsibility under God for people. Aren't those stakes high enough?
We're living in a strange era. A (growing) number of things are given greater importance and less value. Freedom. Sex. In this case, childhood. I just went to Blood Diamond (worth a review -- I'll get to it), and there were kids in the theatre, as young as ten. A movie that in part depicts the African "child warlord" with the bloody awful things that accompany it (it spared the audience witnessing actual rape, but there were brutal threats and other references to it, and there's no illusions in any adult's mind about what's going on with the women in the war camps). What's that going to do to a Canadian kid? Any kid? I don't know. But it's not a social experiment I wish to engage in. I'm not saying we need to start enforcing prudishness or ingorance. But if kids get desensitised to violence at 10, then what? Blood Diamond claims to be fictional, but its reality is being acted out every day -- it's not even possible to pass it off as mere fantasy. But does the fantasy excuse work for 5-7-year-olds watching Pirates of the Carribean? Or the 2-and-4-year-olds exposed to the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy? Hello? What are those parents thinking? Let's go another way -- perhaps more of what you were expecting with the title of the post.
There has been much made of the eroticised (pre)teen for my entire lifetime. Realistically the argument probably started with Frank Sinatra's "bobby-soxers". Only recently, the balance of power has switched. Critical mass is now firmly on the skanky side. But I can't really put my finger on why. What switch goes off in a parent's mind that says it's a good idea to either actively or passively engage in the sexualisation of their children? Is this just the ultimate expression of youth-obsessed culture? (Or will SNL's diaper-thong skit prove prophetic?) Or does it perhaps go along with the commodification of the word "pimp": a hot kid is the ultimate fasion accessory for the suburban-SUV lifestyle? Whatever it is, it's pretty gross.
Children and childhood are not symbols to be wrapped up, commodified and sold in malls. Well, that's not entirely true. They are. But they shouldn't be. As adults, this is our responsibility. This means protecting kids when they need it. Preparing them for the stuff of life (e.g. they're unique and special, but aren't the centre of the universe). And when they're ready for it, pushing them out of the nest. I'm seeing parents everywhere neglecting their responsibilities in each area. It's time to stop and step up!
Hey, I'm part of this whole global-village-raising-a-child thing. And my stake is the condition of the world when I leave it, and my responsibility under God for people. Aren't those stakes high enough?
Labels: criticism
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home