January 19, 2009 3:31 PM
APA report: young girls sexualized by fashion industry and media - increasingly at risk
A must-read for every parent of tween and teen girls - and boys too so you can give them some proper guidance about how they should and should not be thinking of girls. I am downloading now to read with my own kids. Knowledge - in this case, knowledge of how we are manipulated by the media - is Power. Our kids need this kind of sophisticated understanding in our consumerist culture
Report of the APA Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls
In brief: last year the American Psychological Association unveiled the results of a two year study on the sexualization of girls.
They concluded that the culture is pressuring little girls to grow up too fast (Okay, so we already know this, but to hear the American Psychological Association take a conservative position on anything is quite astonishing). They specifically singled out the fashion industry for creating and marketing sexual clothing:
Did you know that in 2003 parents of 7-12 year olds spent $1.6 million on thong underwear??!!??
Cosmetic companies are marketing lines to girls as young as FIVE
Television is calling for girls to be boy-crazy and sexually aggressive
The APA directly links this to teen eating disorders, depression and early sexual activity. THEN...they link that to women who grow up to be sexually REPRESSED due to their body image issues and sexual scars.
The greatest irony is that the APA actually states that "value and religious instruction" are two of the greatest tools to rescue little girls and ultimately WOMEN!
This was drawn to my attention by Dannah Gresh, author of several best-selling books for teens and tweens, who has committed the next three years of her life to standing up for tweens specifically in the area of modesty.
She writes:
I'm calling for 50,000 women to sign my Bod Squad Petition at www.secretkeepergirl.com where you can also download the entire APA report.
I've been interviewed by the global Bible of the fashion industry, Women's Wear Daily, twice about their concern that the industry as gone too far! With their help, I can present the APA's survey to fashion leaders and the voice of 50,000 women who want the fashion industry to take responsibility for what they create for tweens and teens and how they market it!
I'm wondering if you'd be interested in blogging about this?
I'm shamelessly committed to protecting these little girls!
In His Love
Dannah Gresh
Please visit Dannah's blog for interesting current takes on this issue.
Also:
Dirty Dancing at the Prom and Other Challenges Christian Teens Face: How Parents Can Help
Posted in Girls, Mothering, Teens and Tweens | Permalink
Comments
Barbara,
Thanks for posting this. Definitely the media, magazines and the famous are influencing our youth. This influence can actually be positive, when you look at some celebrities who have come out and spoken about their battles. On the other hand the negative is being pushed very strongly - and all in the name of "business practices".
I also want to highlight: "value and religious instruction" - not the irony but the reality behind this statement.
Well done.
Posted by: Philip Robinson | January 20, 2009 12:02 PM
I'm so for this!!! I feel like I'm always the only one in my group of friends who DON'T want her daughters to be popular in the eyes of their peers but GODLY in the eyes of our Creator!
Posted by: Jasmine | September 7, 2009 10:36 PM
