What do you think about child beauty pageants?

I think it is a disgrace. Child abuse. It is just the mothers wanting to live their lives through the child. Children should just be allowed to be children. Every child is beautiful in their own way.

by corne

If it were simply a matter of little girls getting dressed up in pretty dresses and having their hair done it would be fine, but they seem to get too serious and competitive (usually the mothers not the girls themselves at first) and they're not just dressing up as little girls, but made up with hairdos and makeup and costumes that are way too old for them. The way I've seen them portrayed, I wouldn't want my kids to go anywhere near one. I think they make the girls focus too much on how they look and not enough on having fun and gaining life skills, which is what they should be doing at that age.

by Sarah Bell

A Absolute Disgrace!!!!!

by jonaja

that's a doll by the way... :)

Hear! Hear!

I don't think it's good for little girls to be taught to place a lot of importance on their looks, much less deliberately dosed on sugar and caffiene, told to act "sexy" (yuck!), and be pressured about winning. I suppose some of the contestants might actually enjoy competing and have parents who focus on the fun rather than the competition, not pushing them too much, but overall I think it's a bad idea.

by Jennifer Muirhead

When my daughter was about6 she was very small for her age.
She went to modelling classes and was quickly picked by a store in a large shopping centre to do do modelling work, as she was able to wear clothes that were for a 3 year old and had the maturity (?) of a 6 year old.
I encouraged this as she enjoyed it however she gradually lost interest after about a year, so stopped doing it.
I don't think there is anything wrong with this type of thing, though perhaps it is not a pageant, however I think some children legitimately enjoy doing competitions.
However I strongly disagree with the make up and the pushy parents that seem to go along to some of these events.
We only ever see these pushy parents and not the normal parents who do it for the fun of it.

by Finy

I absolutely dislike encouraging this in small kids.

by Smita

Personally, I don't like the idea. In a world where normative beauty standards are already ridiculous, teaching girls to focus on their appearance can't be healthy.

by Vee

Ethics and standards aside they freak me out a little bit. To see tiny girls in fake tan, make up, hairspray and sashaying like a woman is a bit crazy. Some of the dances they have the kids perform are a bit provocative. I've seen a couple of shows on the subject so it's likely I'm only seeing one side. In the broader picture, to teach kids very early on that winning is about beauty is a strange concept.

by helenonthesofa

I totally agree with you.

They're too young to get dressed up and face all of that pressure!

by Justine Crowley

Well as long as it doesn't give them a false idea about life and its nuances.

by Sasha

It is truly one of the most disgusting developments of the 21st century.

Kids are meant to grow up playing in the mud, colouring out of the lines, and exploring the beauty of the world around them, not cake themselves in makeup and be infiltrated by the toxic glam universe.

by Xarah

Yes your spot on.

Not a fan at all. And I don't get that kids have the patience for it.

by Lydia C. Lee

I we could trust the parents and organisers it would be a good way to teach about grooming and good behaviour but alas we cannot be sure that competition and foolish behaviour would not corrupt it.
My daughter showed dogs when she was young. It taught her about dressing modestly, presenting herself correctly and caring for dogs.
The association helped to guide her through the teenage years into woman hood. She still shows dogs and has a huge compassion for them.

by kstew

I we could trust the parents and organisers it would be a good way to teach about grooming and good behaviour but alas we cannot be sure that competition and foolish behaviour would not corrupt it.
My daughter showed dogs when she was young. It taught her about dressing modestly, presenting herself correctly and caring for dogs.
The association helped to guide her through the teenage years into woman hood. She still shows dogs and has a huge compassion for them.

by kstew

It's not a child beauty pageant once you put on all the makeup, hair do, teeth whitening, costumes, tiaras etc. These poor children are tortured. Most little girls love to play with 'Barbie', but it's their mothers who try to turn them into living versions. I bet they have all sorts of social problems back in the real world.

by natal

I Thenk its a crime to use children in beautycontests as children have ther rigth to have ther childhood .Offen they are used as a mums dream .

by peter

I find them totally off. If parents want their children to perform, why not enrol them in ballet (or some other dance style) classes, music lessons or drama lessons? These require some genuine talent and by learning these art forms children cultivate skills that they can use throughout their lives. Through these achievements, children develop a real sense of self-confidence...something that remains with them throughout their lives.

Since beauty pageants just focus on the externals, I think they encourage children to become increasingly superficial, judging themselves and other people entirely on the basis of how they look. Yuk!

by Carolyn Hopping

I have no words to describe how much I hate this, so suffice to say...
'IT IS DISGUSTING'

by Fran

I dont particularly like them. The children often seem bratty and think the world revolves around them.

by Gia

I think its a good experience for children if its just a simple pageant. However, I think many parents have gone overboard in dressing up these little kids like adults. Additionally, some of these little girls behave like little diva monsters that display all sorts of bad behavior.

by dwatk

I don't support child beauty pageants. I think it's unhealthy to begin training girls to put so much emphasis on their looks vs the looks of others.

by Aleigha

Definitely not!
Way too much competiveness amongst the lot of them! Turns sweet little girls into right little .......!
And as for the mothers? Not nice types, usually.
Always remember the sad case of JonBonet in USA.

by donjo

abhorrent on every level I consider it child abuse and the perpetrators should be prosecuted.

by filli

I loathe them. The little ones don't look like children of their age and I'm convinced most of the mothers are living their lives through their children.

by helga

I find it offencive, but most parents sexualise their children when they dress them In gendered clothing so i don't know that many people can really say much about what others do to their kids. Even schools are guilty of sexualising kids with their uniforms and gender segregation all the time.

by filli

Sick and wrong on soooo many levels.

by Polly

Totally disgusting.

by Polly

These pageants should be band altogether. Those poor little girls. They should be out there playing with their little friends, instead of being dressed up to look like freaked out teenager!!!

by Miro

I don't like them and I don't agree with them.

by silvi