Toddlers & Tiaras....does anyone understand?

[Marguerite]

Talk about coincidence - the news on Aussie morning TV is about a pageant in Melbourne which is for 0 to 13, boys too allegedly, which they have to do legally or be in trouble with our anti-discrimination laws (except they're calling the competition "Little MISS Bayside" on the news). The news said there's a swimsuit section.

http://www.littlemissbayside.com.au/page2.php

Since they got mentioned on the news today, their site hit counter is going to go crazy...

There are loud calls for such competitions to be banned in Australia - it's OK to have a competition based on talent, but to JUDGE kids based solely on appearance, is known to cause problems with self-esteem; cause eating disorders; cause body image issues. Not to mention the early sexualisation of children. That is according to some well-recognised psychologists who have been very vocal today about this. One bloke, Michael Car-Gregg, is often called upon for a professional statement from the field of child psychology. He was asked how he feels about this sort of competition in Australia. "I feel about this the same way I feel about dwarf-throwing competitions," he said. "We should have moved beyond such lack of sophistication and lack of compassion."

So there you go.

Nobody is safe!

Marg

 

[KTMom91]

Little Miss Perfect creeps me out much more than Toddlers & Tiaras. The pageant director, Michael (who wears as much makeup as the girls, by the way), wrote a cute little song he sings to the top girls, like he's serenading them. YUK.

"Little Miss Perfect pageant, where all your dreams come true, Little Miss Perfect pageant, where the special one is you..."

 

[DammitJanet]

Oh...I guess you guys noticed I was missing in action!~

Pageants? Toddlers?

Guess I am the reigning pageant grandma on the board. Keyana has been doing pageants since she was a baby. I cant say she liked it as a baby but I know she enjoys it now. She is the reigning Wee Miss Peanut Ambassador for a county in NC. Last year she was Little Wee Miss Peanut Festival.

Who knows what she will go on to become. I dont see her stopping anytime soon. She loves dressing up and being a princess. She loves her crowns and her sashes. She loves parades and she loves waving. If she learns nothing else, she will learn to be outgoing. Her smile is anything but fake and those of you who have seen her pics know that.

Pageants arent for everyone and there are bad apples everywhere but they are no different than parents who put kids in sports or gymnastics or dance competition.

 

[trinityroyal]

Pageants arent for everyone and there are bad apples everywhere but they are no different than parents who put kids in sports or gymnastics or dance competition.

Until this thread, I had never heard of the show Toddlers and Tiaras. However, I suspect that like lots of other shows on telly, it takes the sensational and grotesque aspects and magnifies them for ratings. I don't imagine that the pageants Keyana participates in are the sort that are featured on the show. And I think "stage mothers" can crop up everywhere. I vividly remember when I was a competitive junior tennis player, overhearing a father carefully explain to his daughter (and my opponent in the next match) how to cheat so that the umpire wouldn't catch on.