Beauty pageants for minor children - Do these seem odd or normal to you? Would you care to share why you answer as you have?
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Freddy Says remove all moderation points
ANSWERS: 24
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I think that they are a gross abuse of children. It makes them pretentious and arrogant due to their looks. And more so in a day when we are told that children should not compete in sports because it is unfair on the less sporting kids. Nobody seems to care about the "ugly" ones!
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I think if it is only for fun. Most people take it way to serious. If it is fun for the child then yes I am for it.
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In my opinion, it robs children of being...children. From what I understand a lot of time and money is invested in beauty pageants. It sends mixed messages to all children involved and it teaches the children to be superficial at a very young age. That has to alter how they think of themselves, if at all.
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Odd, cruel and abusive. They make "sex objects" out of little girls. That is very bad, not good, terrible, awful, dreadful and vile.
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Minor children include those of 15 or 16 or older. These are ok, IF THE CHILD wants to do it. If they want to get into pagents, this is a starting point. While the dangers listed below are still there, and if they don't understand those, there could be problems, this gives them an idea of what to expect as they get older. They will teach them what it means to win and lose gracefully, hopefully. They also can and should provide scholarship dollars to at least the top five. Below 15, they're tatamount to abuse and they're just creepy. You KNOW pedophiles are there... You KNOW they're paying attention and getting hot... You KNOW that the majority of the time, it's the MOTHER (possibly, but not likely, the father, too) PUSHING the girl into doing this... You KNOW... This is NOT to say those "Beautiful Baby" contests (picture only - No makeup, no major dressup, no talent show) should be done away with. These are a different animal than pagents.
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Lets just say I have an absolutely beautiful little girl. Pretty enough that random strangers stop us and tell either her or me that she's beautiful/cute/pretty/gorgeous/etc, and she's actually been tipped by a waiter (who asked me if he could give her a dollar) just for being so cute after he'd already given her a free thing of fries. And my daughter would never, ever, EVER be allowed anywhere NEAR that sort of things. Not even when she's 15 or 16. If she's 18 and wants to do that, fine. But children should be taught that beautiful is inside, not just how you look and the show you put on. We have conversations about how it's more important to be friendly and generous and kind than pretty and talented. As my teeth were being cleaned, I could hear her chattering out in the waiting room to an old man who was waiting for his wife. They commented not only on how pretty she was, but also on how friendly and nice she was. And that is the sort of "pageant" I'd prefer for her to compete in.
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I wouldn't use the word "odd", exactly. I could give a broad list of the reasons why I despise them but I have better ways to waste my time.
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I think they are ridiculous and that they give the wrong message to the child. I feel that everyone , especially children, are beautiful. Who would think it is normal to have anyone judging which child is the most beautiful. I think they are shallow and just plain abusive. They prove nothing and they are harmful. Kids have enough problems with peer pressure and the media being stupid without your own parents allowing such an absurd contest.
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It's boarderline child abuse.
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To me it seems bizarre. These pageants only feed into the false idea of beauty in our culture. They put children in make-up and often inappropriate attire, all for the benefit of the parent's sense of 'success'.
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I find them very distasteful. To see young children wearing more makeup than a Streetwalker and put on a stage to flaunt herself is to my mind a parents sickness and encourages paeodophilia.
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ODD AND NOT A HEALTHY THING FOR KIDS TO TAKE PART IN IN A GENERATION THAT SPAWNED THE JACKSON FAMILY, AND HAS REPORTS OF CHILD LABOUR IN MANY PARTS OF THE FAR EAST I FEEL THIS IS A WESTERN VERSION OF CHILD EXPLOITATION EVEN IF MY CHILD WAS GIFTED AND HANDSOME I WOULD NEVER ENTER THEM INTO A BEAUTY CONTEST EVEN WORSE IS THE STEREOTYPE KIND OF PARENT WHO PUSHES THESE KIDS INTO THESE COMP'S WHAT IS THE REAL GAIN AT THE END WHEN A KID EVENTUALLY WINS OR LOSES?
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Odd is nowhere near a strong enough word for parents that subject their children to this pantomime.
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to me it is odd. minor children should be taught ppl should accept them for who they are, not how they look. It does take a toll on them as well they are all tired out, moms getting angry at their little girl because she isn't looking directly at the crowd, parents going crazy buying dresses that cost thousands of dollars. Parents paying money just so there little girl can enter a contest. parents spending thousands of money for a portfolio for little "christina". It is was the parents want, not the little one. let kids be kids. if they want to decide to be in a pageant one day, let it be when they are at an age when they know ppl have to accept them for who they are. Otherwise, they will be taken advantage of by others.
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Well I believe that the point of these pagents which is centered towards the kids, for self-esteem, winning and losing(sportsmanship so to speak), interacting with other children etc..., has been stolen by the parents to fullfill their own asperations. Its sad really something that is meant to be fun for children is turned into forced activity by parents.
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One thing that comes to mind is the movie "Little Miss Sunshine"
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I realize I will catch hell for saying this, but to me it's tatamount to exploitation of minor children. It's the parent who initiates this behavior, the parent who trains the child to become ( in effect ) a sex object, the parent who benefits economically should the child "succeed," and the parent who benefits psychologically from the child's participation. It has always seemed to me to be a parental attempt to live vicariously through their child. It almost qualifies as another form of child abuse.
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I agree with angel, have you ever seen the parents that force their kids into this? Seems like they are trying to live vicariously, but it's just not right for a child at that age, and if one says "I like doing it." It's probably because that's what He/she's been told to say. Or it's been repeated so many times that's what she believes is "normal". I've seen pageants with contestants as little as 8 months...why put makeup on a child ANYwhere under 16? Does no one even think about their actions anymore? In this day in age, we can do about anything we want, so long as we don't hurt anyone, but there is damage going on, mental.
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I call them an abuse. If its a costume party and kid wants to look like Barbie - who am I to say the parent doesn't doll her up? But if its every weekend and all the time with lessons, teeth pieces, hairspray cans by the dozen - that's abuse. And some of them look like little tramps with pseudo turns and stupid dances while supposedly "modeling" clothes. I call that garbage. The pageants should be under the same rules as the kid actors & actresses in Hollywood. The money goes into a college fund and held in trust. The parents may stop doing this stunts stuff to get entry fees from one pageant to another if this came to be.
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I think they are a fun safe past time for kids. Only if the parents are taking into consideration how the child is feeling. If they say "Mommy I don't want to do this" which even young kids are capable of saying then thats it. But otherwise they should be something fun and girly for a mother and daughter to do together. They are not harmful if done in a fun light nature, and neither are they pedophiles dream spot. No people other than contestants and family members are allowed to watch or go in the ballroom where the competition is taking place ever. You must have a badge from your pre-paid order to gain access to the pageant quarters. Not only that but my little sister has done them since she was 8 months old (so maybe I'm biassed) but the money that she has won over the 5 years shes been doing them has gone into a college fund. Plus the little girls like the make-up and sparkly clothes, its fun to dress up.
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i think there o.k.....as long as the child wants to do it, if thy are forced, they just going to end up resenting their parents for forcing them. plus im not big on little girls looking like women..there are plenty of pageants that are based on personal qualities..not how much money does mommy have to give you fake teeth ya know, they should celebrate the inner beauty and accomplishments of young ladies, thats what will give them true confidence.
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I think they are odd, and perhaps damaging. Why teach children that beauty is the most important thing in life, they will figure it out as they get older anyway.
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It creeps me out to see little ones dolled up. A new show, Toddlers and Tiaras, is being broadcast this month. Not sure I want to see it. You are right to teach your daughter that beauty comes from the inside. My daughter is beautiful also. She's now 18 and has always received lots of attention as well. But she knows beauty comes from within. My daughter was nominated for the Miss NY State (Miss USA) pageant. That happens to be a grand money-making scheme (Donald Trump owns the pageant) if it's anything. We thought about it but just from ballet lessons my daughter took, I know what the stage mothers are like. A friend of mine's daughter was in the Miss Texas pageants for several years. It's a lot of nasty backbiting, not edifying at all. Besides, I'd never be able to afford it. The girls have to pay for each competition they are in, too. Sheesh.
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They do not seem normal to me. I believe the mothers of these children are exploiting them for some unrequited dream they had themselves
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