Lights, camera, pouty lips welcome to the four dimensional world of children 's beauty pageants. Over the years, child pageants have become a hot topic gaining a great deal of delight from numerous people around the world. From having a strong standing, ongoing fan base that keeps the hit TLC TV show Toddlers and Tiaras; on air to having some of Americans ' favorite beauty queens making guest appearances on shows such as the Ellen Show. Regretfully, the idea of putting an end to child pageants has become somewhat of a hotter topic than the pageants themselves. People often put down what they do not understand why dress a child like that? Why all the make-up? What some do not seem to understand is that there are advantages to being a beauty …show more content…
Although this may not be a scientifically proven fact it is understood that young children seem to start to learn and point out what they like and dislike about themselves early on in life. Being a child pageant star could be just what a child needs to develop that kick start to a healthy self-esteem. Highlighted in Elizabeth Day’s “Living Dolls” an eleven-year old girl named Chloe Lindsay was teased for being over-weight by her classmates. Even going as far as to tag her with the nickname “fat Barbie.” Day says due to bulling Chloe was put through daily, there were times when she would not want to leave the house, for fear of being picked on (34). Some may disagree and say that a child being in a child pageant knocks down their esteem to a whole new level. But for Chloe adding a bit of make-up and fake eyelashes was the best thing for her. It made her feel very pretty and gave her the confidence, she needed to go on stage (Day). When doing a pageant, children get to show off who he or she is in front of people that they have never seen before. This could be a child’s first experience with singing on stage with a real microphone and real people hearing them. No one should have a problem with children that want to try and sing and dance on stage. If a child has a well- build self-confidence it shows and it could be easier for him or her to make new friends. Being in pageants is a small network of girls and boys who participate in numerous events together, allowing these children to make friendships that can last
In 2009, TLC aired a reality television show entitled Toddlers and Tiaras. It was instantly a hit with home viewers and also brought major controversy over child beauty pageants. The show focused mainly on glitz pageants; which requires all contestant, however young, to compete with make-up, spray tans, acrylic nails and revealing costumes. Many, such as I were entertained at first with the pint size Barbie dolls; however after watching a couple episodes, controlling stage moms and toddler melt downs reveal that glitz beauty pageants are nothing less than objectification and exploitation of young girls. Beauty pageants not only exploit children but are detrimental to the child’s physical, emotional and psychological health.
Beauty pageants that involve children are a booming industry and growing fast in popularity. This is partially because of television shows like Toddlers and Tiaras and Living Dolls, which glorify pageants that threaten the innocence of childhood. According to Lucy Wolfe, “in 2011, three million children participated in pageants across the country” (454). With so many children, some as young as six months old, partaking in pageants and countless more aspiring to be pageant princesses, a closer look needs to be taken at the practices that are used to prepare them for the show. Often working long hours, not only prepping for the pageant but also performing in it, the children have no laws protecting them from being harmed or exploited.
who have their children in beauty pageants say that their children gain confidence through performing. They also say that they are more prepared for life and will be more socially comfortable. They argue that their children mature at a younger age than "normal" children do. Why would any parent want their children to grow up any faster than they already do? Beauty pageants are not the only way that a child at such a young age can gain confidence.
The fight for beauty has now leaked into our young children and is creating countless issues that will be visible in these children and their futures. Like the old saying; beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Someone or something that is considered attractive, good looking, etc. to one person may not exactly appeal the same to another. If we lived in a “perfect” world, maybe everyone would follow these wise words and admit that evaluating beauty is such a biased thing to do. Beauty pageants are becoming more and more popular since they were created back in the 1920's. Especially, children pageants. The media is a big provoker in this case with their ‘Little Miss Perfect” and “Toddlers in Tiaras” shows. In which, it’s clear the level of commitment a pageant takes and how they are not bearable for children, and I mean simply unfair for them to go through the burden of a beauty pageant.
The thought of raising a child and having the child ripped away, especially murdered, is a very hard thought to take in. Having the weight of a guilty conscience on top of the pain is an even worse thing to think about. Its hard to imagine that being a reality, but it was exactly what John Ramsey and his family had to face in 1996 when their six-year-old daughter JonBenet was murdered after being displayed in the pageant world. Being on that stage was the very thing that brought Ramsey to her killers’ attention. The world of pageants is a dangerous place, not only in respect to safety, but also in respect to negatively affecting the children’s futures by teaching them damaging qualities. There are benefits to children being involved in pageants, but the bad seems to outweigh the good. In today’s society, some see sexualizing children at such young ages are beneficial for them because they gain confidence and poise, but they indeed are impacting their futures in harmful ways by teaching them to be disobedient and have bad attitudes, inviting predators and phedophiles in, and exploiting their young bodies.
What comes to mind when the words "child beauty pageants" are spoken? What some people think about is, crazy moms pushing their daughters to win, and little girls dressing and to look like Barbie’s. Is this setting a good example for children? It teaches them that people are only judged by looks, not their personality. Instead the lesson they are learning is that looks are the only thing that matters.
It was the day after Christmas in 1996 when 6 year old beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey was murdered, she was found with a skull fracture and there was evidence of sexual molestation. The investigation is still unsolved and ongoing but it is thought that her prominence in the local pageant circuit made her an obvious target for child predators (Bio., 2011). Child beauty pageants are pageants in which the contestants are under the age of 16, many of the participants start performing when they’re as young as a few months old and continue doing pageants until adulthood. Underage beauty pageants have been around for over 50 years, and have now become a common hobby and are most commonly found in the South. While these competitions have gained popularity
According to Angie Lynch, “I have no desire to have my daughters ' looks judged against other people 's daughters ' looks. Being ranked from best to worst in a public forum is not how I want my children to develop their self-esteem.” I personally will never allow my children to participate in beauty pageants because of all the negativity along with it. I was hurt just from the one pageant that I did compete in as a child. I cannot imagine what another child may feel after competing multiple times and still never
People argue that beauty pageants help boost self confidence through performance on stage and that pageants can help you later in life. “The pageant has given me a lot of self confidence and self-esteem. The pageant directors make me feel wonderful and brought out qualities in me that I never knew were there” (qtd. in Decker). This is not always the case. Different scenarios affect girls differently. She stated that the directors made her feel wonderful but there is no guarantee that a director or anyone will pay special attention to a child. Another argument is that beauty pageants help later in life. An example of this is Shannon Depuy. She won prize money in pageants which helped put her through college (Decker). Shannon Depuy did pageants for a lot of her life. She is described as a “veteran All-star of American beauty pageant circuit” (Decker). This is good for Shannon since she had practice, but beginning beauty competitors may not be so lucky. Depuy having a history of pageants gave her an advantage. The fact that beauty pageants help boost confidence and help later in life is great for the girls this applies to, but this is not the case for beginning beauty competitors who are usually the main competitors.
Many young girls are forced to wear preposterous outfits and enormous amounts of makeup that deny them of their innocence at a young age. Beauty contests are meant more for adult women who are mature enough to understand all that’s going on and can handle losing competitions to the other contestants. Children should not be able to compete in pageants because of the harmful effects on self-confidence and character. Some people think they are good and some do not agree that they are good. (Leo, 2014)
Now let us know the other side of the story. Others argued that beauty pageants promote self-esteem. Facing other people is not easy. Only few are capable enough that can face the crowd with great confidence. It is indeed in beauty pageants that women gain confidence. It is in beauty pageants that allow women to be empowered. They are given the chance to meet other people. Meeting those new faces will boosts their confidence. It is in meeting those new faces and seeing people happy and proud on what they are doing on stage that they feel that they are given importance and they are idolize. It is also their time to show to others their hidden talents. It is in beauty pageants also that they want to prove to all that they can overcome their shyness in facing different types of people.
" Money, ratings and attention fuel the pageant/dance media machine, with parents and adults reaping the benefits. Purpose of Child Beauty Pageants For these young pageant girls, brains before beauty is not the case. Real-world priorities such as schooling, family, and friends are trumped by tiaras, makeup, and evening gowns. More value is often placed on being beautiful in the eyes of the judges, than on each girl’s individuality.
“Three parents who were interviewed put their children into pageants because they have birth defects. ‘Her plastic surgeon thinks it’s wonderful because he sees parents hide their children with a facial defect,’ according to one mother, whose daughter has a cleft palate. ‘We don’t go for competition or for her to win. We go to meet other children and parents. We don’t want her to think she’s different, that she isn’t beautiful.” (Cromie). The main reason people participate in pageants is the benefit of gaining confidence. (Shappert). Parents enter their children into pageants when they are young so they can learn to be comfortable with who they are and meet many new people. (Cromie). The downside of placing a child into the pageantry world is that it can become very costly. Parents can spend hundreds up to even a thousand dollars just on the dress, this is not including the hair, nails, fake teeth and coaching, if the parent wishes to increase their chances of winning. (Cromie). Another disadvantage to putting young children or even young adults into pageants is that the thought of winning can get to their head. The competition can become too serious for them. On television shows like Toddlers and Tiaras children are often shown throwing tantrums when they do not win.
Today there are many new extracurricular activities that occupy a lot of young Americans minds. One trending activity is beauty pageants. It is more common in children where the ages may vary between eight months and even older. The trending debate is whether or not beauty contest serve any purpose in society. While many Americans feel as though pageants are helpful to a child’s self esteem, many feel that the effects of the contest have a very harsh effect on child development by devaluing a child. Researchers have found that beauty contests are effective for women to help make platforms for their careers and also create new jobs for women to create like mentoring children.
Pageants have a way of exploiting children by changing their looks and attitudes to make them more adult like and entertaining; dressing children in bikinis or provocative costumes just to be judged by how well they wear it and how pretty they are is demeaning and cruel. Children should not be taught that looks are everything and you get everything you want in life because when they're older it will be harder for them to accept reality. Imitating the fashion and looks of an adult is not how a child should grow up. A parent should want their child to grow up knowing that they are naturally beautiful and their personality and smarts can get them far in life rather than beauty beats brains, correct?