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Vogue Paris
A French parliamentary report is calling for a ban on child beauty pageants and children's lingerie, responding to international outrage after Vogue Paris published a provocative photo shoot of a 10-year-old girl.
A year after Vogue Paris published provocative images of a 10-year-old model, a French government report has called for a ban on child beauty pageants and padded bras and high heels for young girls.
Although the French did not react immediately to the photos of Thylane Lena-Rose Blondeau, 10, in skyscraper heels and revealing clothes in the January 2011 issue of Vogue Paris, the international community did, prompting the French parliamentary report.
Chantal Jouanno, the senator who authored the report, told Le Figaro newspaper that young girls were being disguised as sexual candy and that it was “contrary to the dignity of the human being.” She called it a step backward for gender equality.
Jouanno, a close ally of President Nicolas Sarkozy and former karate champion, also wants to prohibit advertising agencies from using young models and says uniforms should return to elementary schools.
Vogue defended the photo shoot of the elementary-aged girl, according to the Guardian, saying that young models were simply dressing up like their mothers. There is no mention of the scandal on Thylane’s Facebook fan page, which reads, simply: “At 10, the little Thylane Lena-Rose Blondeau is already a model!”
Teens as young as 14 have been shimmying down the catwalk for years in the United States. Recently, child actresses Hailee Steinfeld, 14, of "True Grit" fame, and Elle Fanning, 13, have signed modeling deals with Miu Miu and Marc Jacobs.
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Ya think?
Can we adopt that ideas in America please. These Pageants are perv magnets
This practice is full-on creepy. Every time I see a picture of a toddler dressed up like a prostitute, I shudder to think of the message this sends to pedophiles that sexualizing children is socially acceptable. What normal person wants to see a 10-year-old in high heels and a padded bra? Don't feed the trolls. Is it really going to ruin her career to wait until she's 18 to model Victoria's Secret? What's wrong with kids dressing like kids? Blue jeans, t-shirts, tennis shoes, there are plenty of normal clothes for child models to sell. No need for this thinly disguised pornography.
Amen GA Girl!!! This has been going on too long around the world, its using kids to not just sell products, but its all sexual...children's lingerie? OMG why?Thongs for teens? Tweens?...and younger?...WTF!!!
Why The Frown?
It is time to stop the exploitation of children to boost parents egos !! Let them be children and realize imperfect is normal and healthy
I don't think the parents are that concerned about boosting their egos.
They are trying harder to boost their own bank accounts!
Let kids be kids for just a while longer instead of filling their heads with everything associated with being an adult. These kids are being paraded in order to be noticed by advertising to sell nothing other than sex appeal. No wonder we are having a pedophile explosion on our hands. In this case France is correct.
Now if we could ban them here as well, no, let's not "ban" them, let's just teach people to not think that it is acceptable to do. No child needs to be dressed up and paraded around like that. It's sad, and people need to be instructed as to why it's sad.
Viva La France! Time for me to order my French Fries and French Toast once again!
the reason why we are having a "pedophile explosion on our hands" is because no pedophiles have executed lately...
Might as well execute all the schizophrenics or anyone with dissociative identity disorder as well.
But, I think what you mean is child molesters, not pedophiles.
Pedophilia is a disease and needs to be treated as such.
Pictures like these and these pageants are a pedophiles's wet dream
@Some Guy- A disease! No! I think not! Dessociative identity disorder! All excuses for people to do these horrible things to children. It's simple- They are children- LEAVE THEM ALONE!
Brooke Shields posed nude, at 13, in a bath tub which had bubbles. But she also stood up and she was totally nude. She was eye candy to any pedophile. Her parents should of been arrested for distributing porn. What message are we sending our children, when as parents, we approve of having a 13 year old female posed nude. It sickens me. I don't blame her but I do blame her parents...With all the news we hear about pedophiles we should know these are treasure troves to these sickos.
children are being exploited in this country by mothers and fathers who are living fantasy lives through their offspring? You should be! Child pageants should be outlawed in the United States and if you think about it, they probably fall under existing abuse and neglect statutes in many states but go unreported or without any investigation. Case in point, the mother who feeds her 3 year old an energy drink so that she becomes hyper-active. Clearly, in my view, abuse and neglect.
What..... pedophilia is a disease and should be treated as such. Mindless drivel. Pedophilia is no more a disease than alcoholism or obesity. Unless there is a genetic link these are all laziness traits. Stop drinking stop eating and stop fantasizing about under age children. Stop making excuses for defective people. A disease..... how many more road blocks will you put up to defend the indefensible.
For once there's something that France and I agree on. It's pretty disturbing how "grown up" these girls are made to be when they compete in these pageants. They're out there wearing pounds of makeup and skimpy outfits, and apparently, padded bras. I was never so dumbfounded as when I watched a news special on these pageants and found out that most of the girls are even wearing false teeth. It apparently just won't do to have a little girl look like a little girl, and that is just sad.
@Dom, there is a genetic link in many cases of alcoholism. So yes, it is a disease.
It's time for France to shut up.
Normally, I'm don't put much stock into anything France has to offer but in this case they seem to have a proper stance on an issue ... unless you're a pedophile, then you may not agree.
yes I can see this is going to be an intelligent conversation, where only pedophiles are against trying to outlaw underage beauty pageants or child-sized underwear that's too "sexy"
Clebro, why does it offend you so much that France thinks it's outrageous to sexualize children? And who are you to tell a nation to "shut up?" You must feel very strongly about it, and that makes me suspicious of you, to say the least. Do you sexually exploit children in some way--perhaps through photography or working for the child pornography ring that hides in plain sight by pretending to be beauty pageants? What kind of person sees beauty in a child dressed up like a whore?
Seek help. And stay away from our kids.
Why do you say "it's time for France to shut up"? YOU shut up! Disguising little girls as hookers, or made up dolls strutting on stage only appeals to pedophiles so you're on the side of the pervs?. The innocense of children should be protected at all cost, not exploited. Shame on the parents and shame on you. Thanks Carolanne1
I was under the impression that pedophiles liked little girls to be little girls. I would think dressing up little girls like this (as woman) would be a turn off... it takes away their innocence. You know? I don't know.
Sicko's are sicko's. Who cares what they like when it involves little children?
clebro2: Spoken like someone who has nothing of importance to say, which probably means you also have nothing of importance between your ears.
Anyone who thinks this is OK to do needs a beating..... @ Clebro, Why? you think France is wrong?? By that response I think there should be a kiddie porn task force on the way to your house right now!!!
Why don't you shut up! who are you to judge French? tell me? have you ever leave in France? How can you judge us?
Wow France doesn't want to exploit little girls who grow up to be young women who purchase what they tell the world the current fashion trend is???
And here all along I thought they started the whole "This is what your body should look like" world of bulimia and anorexia fashion designs.
LMFAO
No, it's time for YOU to shut up.....and go away.
Clebro2- you appear to be offended by this decision are you a pedophile? France does something right ( and that is a rare thing) and you get upset. you just earned yourself a spot on the watch this pervert list.
What kind of a photographer takes pictures like these? We all know the answer to that. What kind of parent allows it? The same kind.
Knan
What kind of a photographer takes pictures like these? We all know the answer to that. What kind of parent allows it? The same kind.
Well probably a photographer who works for Vogue.....but I get what you're saying.
I have a young daughter and people are always wanting me to enter her in the US version of these monstrosities. The thought horrifies me. So many women are crippled with insecurity why add my daughter to the list? I am all for competition - scholastic competition, athletics etc. not something as shallow and arbitrary as "beauty". To give some group of random strangers the right and power to dictate to my child if she is "attractive enough" is a thought that just staggers my mind. Not to mention risking giving her the delusion that her physical looks matter more than character, intelligence and hard work. I know there are scholarships and child models "can" make a lot of money but what amount of money is worth a child's self esteem. (And yes I know the child that "wins" feels like a princess but what about the others who feel they have let down their parents? And what happens to the "winner" when she grows up and finds there is more to life?" I know there are exceptions to the things I fear but I really just do not understand it.
Good news for a change!!! Agreed Ellis in post #2. What is so wrong about kids being kids??? They'll get to be adults with all of the adult problems soon enough.
Oui!
Of course the French are smarter than us.
eh, normally I would disagree. I have a real problem with them dictating what Muslim women can and cannot wear. In this instance, though, I agree. It's disgusting. Little girls do not need that crap. Little girls should not be sexy, they should be little girls.
aoiyume: I totally agree on the ban of little girl pageant. I also agree on French government banning Muslim to wear burqa . Last time I went to visit my mom, in France, I was shocked to see women in groceries stores wearing a burqa. I am not saying one or two! In every aisle of the store there were at least 5 or 6. Problem is: you don't know who's behind it...
Plus if you "dare" looking at them even for 1 second, then the husband comes to you and says: do you have a problem?
Well...I do have a problem! France is my country! and I like people who live in my country to respect my country! I live in the USA for now 13 years and I respect this country! I follow the rules, I obey the law! they don't! they mock French, they don't respect the law !
It also happened to me that when I was waiting for a bus, in France, 3 guys sat next to me and they spat at my feet, saying that I was a french whore!
How would you react if I was spitting at your feet saying you are an american whore?
France is right to want foreigners to respect France! More should be done about that! Call me a racist? well no, I am not! I have friends from all over the world, Cameroon, Serbia, Chile, Russia, Spain, Germany, America, Brazil and from different religions: Jewish, Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox..
No Muslim? well I had one. Her brother forbid her to see me because I am Catholic! I never saw her again. Why? she was sent to Algeria to marry a guy against her will!
Please think about what I wrote..and may be you will understand why French act the way they act. feel free to ask me questions about my country and how we are slowly invaded by Muslims!
Have a nice day!
aoiyume
I have a HUGE problem with burkas.
If women wear them by "choice"...that is unacceptable to me. Are they brain washed? Are they trying to hide things in the flowing cloth? What?
They are force fed bull$#!+ about how they need to cover up for the sake of society.
It denies them the ability to recognize and make friends in public.
As a woman I'm OFFENDED that they are herded about in this garb like cattle!
Men should be offended as well. These women (and the "men" that support the burka) believe if they show their faces and arms- other men, being such poorly behaved impulsive animals, will rape them!
WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP.
The burka is about insecure men with little dingies keeping a frightened grip on their "property" by spreading their fear to women.
Hey Muslim men....Nothing makes a man more manly than a secure persona and showing kindness and respect to the opposite sex by letting them do what they want, where they want in any clothes they choose. Only when a FREE woman WANTS to sleep with you.....are you a healthy sexual being.
As for child pageants....ban them. Yeah France.
French Girl Forever: what would you tell the French women who convert and prefer to don the Burqa? Would you tell them to get lost? That its YOUR France? Because Im sure they feel France is as much theirs as it is yours. Remember not ALL Muslim women are immigrants from the Middle East. There are plenty European Muslims. As for the husband coming over and demanding what you are staring at? I would do the same thing if I see someone gawking at my family member as if he or she is a circus freak.
Rani
Your missing the point.
AND....women in burkas ARE freaks. (thankfully)
It would be a sad day indeed if the burka was to become so common place that it was not noticed as the sad oddity it is in western (better than middle eastern) civilization.
I think parents who enter their kids in child beauty pageants should be charged with abuse. Pure and simple. Let kids be KIDS. Dress-up should be a fun thing for pretend-time, it shouldn't be fraught with judgement on how "beautiful" a child is. It should not involve parading in skimpy costumes in front of ADULTS. If a little girl wants to wear plastic heels and play dress-up AT HOME or playing with her friends, that's one thing. But all of the child beauty pageants really are there for the PARENTS (usually the moms) to fulfill their own warped needs for approval, acceptance and ego.
You hit the nail on the head. Have you ever seen the show Toddlers and Tiaras. It is disturbing how parents act.
Kids should be kids. Parents need to grow up. Sadly I dont see that happening anytime soon
Russ
Stop watching "Toddlers in Tiaras".
Your adding fuel to the fire.
Like PJ, 'friends' keep telling me to enter my daughter into pageants. She is a beautiful little girl, however, it's exploitation and trashy. Absolutely trashy. Why would I, as a parent and mentor, subject my daughter to something that would be detrimental to her self-esteem. Beauty is trivial. When beauty fades or becomes too plastic and unrealistic, that fragile scrap of worth is gone. I would rather my daughter value the arts and sciences, and embark on humanitarian and social endeavors. Will she? Who knows, that is for her to decide. My job is to positively reinforce a simple code of ethics.
I would NEVER in a BILLION years put my daughter through something that would ruin her self-worth. Beauty pageants and shows like the vile "Toddlers and Tiaras" (which I am only told about) are absolutely nothing but trash and exploitation.
Objectifying Children should be outlawed world wide. There should be no beauty pagents for children, they are disgusting and teach our children the wrong message. Children should be able to just be kids. The first time I ever saw a little girl dressed up in a Glamour Shots photo looking like a grown woman was JonBenet Ramsey. It shocked and appalled me then and still does. Kids grow up way too fast, what with all of the violence and sex on Television and in the Theaters. We are grooming a generation of violent, oversexed neurotic soon to be adults. If it doesn't disturb you... it should. There should be something sacred about keeping children innocent as long as possible. With no worldly knowledge, free to play and run themselves silly.
Kids ARE affected by what they see, taste, feel and so on. You cannot tell me that beauty pagents don't warp the minds of young girls. The same goes for boys with violent play and violent video games. Let kids be kids... little girls should be able to play sports, take ballet, play dress up and have tea parties. Parading around looking like underage hookers isn't playing dress up.
I don't know if an outright ban is the solution. I think it should be up to the parents to decide whether or not their child will model or not. Then I think parents need to set the ground rules, like no heavy makeup, no provacative clothing, no provacative poses, etc.
Modeling or acting in situations suitable for children is not necessarily a bad thing but suitable for children would be the key: toy commercials, families doing family activities, children's sports, etc. It's sick how the little girl in the photo featured in this article appears. These pageants and dressing up a child like a 40 year old woman on the prowl is not normal and will do nothing to help mature a child into a secure and well rounded human being. The advertisers gear these ads and the products to adults. Fine. Use adult models who have the ability to make an adult decision on their own.
John, have you seen the ads for TLC's "Toddlers and Tiaras"? It **IS** the parents making the decisions. And they show the parents - both mom and dad - showing their daughters how to walk and pose "sexy". I've written to Discovery Networks twice to protest this show, which seems to cater to nobody but parents with oversized egos and undersized brains.
TLC used to be "the Learning Channel". Now it's the Trashy Little Children channel. The fact that they seem to be trending on shows that border on child abuse is alarming. "Dance Moms" is another child abusing TLC show. It's sad that I can't let me kids watch what used to be a highly regarded educational channel.
It might not be a bad idea if people started boycotting the products of those companies who use this kind of advertising.
Mike, I don't mean to nitpick, but "Dance Moms" is actually on Lifetime, not TLC.
Well, TLC was once The Learning Channel. When they made millions from the exploitation of the Gosselin children, people should have spoken up. For the nation to get their jollies from the disintegration of a family is vile, to say the least. Money talks, and the only way to have any effect is to boycott, not only the ugly shows that exploit children, (yes, Jim Bob and Michelle, I'm talking about you) but the entire channel. Maybe, Discovery will get a clue when it affects their bottom line.
Really enough is enough, just close the channel down if your not getting viewers anymore. Stop selling out and trying to be like the bigger channels who stole your viewers.
John
The problem is...THESE parents are STUPID.
We need to help the kiddos out.
It's illegal to do or not do many things to children. This horror SHOULD be added to the list.
I don't think dog owners should be left to decide if they fight their pitbulls or eat their poodles, either.
Thanks MsPiven! Probably a good thing I only wrote to TLC about "Tiaras" then! LOL
Children should never be subjected to any activity originally intended for adults. Personally, I would hold the parents responsible for destroying the innocence of childhood.
Parents putting their kids in beauty pageants are just plain ol' white trash.
I personally have had a real dislike for this sh!t since Jon Benet Ramsey!
Vive la France! Those exploitation pageants should be outlawed.
Banning something equals more government control. Just gently revise the guidelines and these pageants will probably go away by themselves. You all dont need to start gnashing your teeth, foaming at the lips and spouting platitudes everytime someone yanks your chain.
Kids the world over are brutalized, mangled and starved by the thousands everyday. So let's all gnash our teeth over beauty pageants.
While you are at it, don't forget the Olympic ice skaters. Turn in those little fairy skirts for knickerbockers, girls. And you gymnasts! Get into your coveralls so you can perform.
Banning something equals more government control. Just gently revise the guidelines and these pageants will probably go away by themselves. You all dont need to start gnashing your teeth, foaming at the lips and spouting platitudes everytime someone yanks your chain.
Kids the world over are brutalized, raped, mangled and starved by the thousands everyday. So let's all gnash our teeth over beauty pageants.
While you are at it, don't forget the Olympic ice skaters. Turn in those little fairy skirts for knickerbockers, girls. And you gymnasts! Get into your coveralls so you can perform.
While I agree with the comparison with the gymnasts (the uniforms are generally too high cut for my taste), most female skaters usually have a costume that covers everything. About the only thing that isn't covered is the legs. The tops are totally covered, even if you don't really see it unless you're up close.
The pageants,however, are a different story. Low cut tops, high cut bottoms, provocative moves, waayyyy too much makeup, and not to mention the stress the parents put these kids through for the competitions. I don't care how much my daughter asked me, I would NEVER let her do one of these things. Degrading
Iamyouall:
If you really don't understand the difference between the ice skaters and gymnasts as compared to beauty pageants, you are seriously lacking in discernment.
Decent people KNOW this is wrong. I am so tired of people like you who make the most feeble, lame comparisons and accept laws that put jackboots in airports but protest laws that protect children from pedophilia.
If you have no scruples and no morals to the point that you protest the protection of children from sexual exploitation, then you are part of the decay of this society. Period. Stand up and be counted for what you are.
Who is being protected from pedophilia by banning youth beauty pageants, nitwit? Are you implying that far too many pageant contestants are victims of pedophiles? The murmuring masses pay little attention to these events. No one really cares except, in your mind at least, pedophiles, who run out by the thousands right after every pageant, seeking new victims in the night.
I may find these pageants a little disgusting, but only a thoughtless churl and shoe clerk like yourself wants to ban anything they find disgusting. Twelve year olds bashing each others' heads in on a football field is probably not digusting. All decent people must know that too.
Decent people know 60 million people overweight is not right. What's a shoe clerk going to do, ban them?
IAMYOUALL,
You're not like me at all !!
I don't think you find them disgusting at all, no, not even a little bit. If you can't see that parading little girls around dressed up like adult vamps encourages the sexualization of children and therefore supports pedophilia, there is a reason for your blindness.
I don't have to guess what it is. I may be a "nitwit" but I'm not so stupid that I don't know what you are.
I have no problem with children modeling age-appropriate clothing; but children should not be advertised as sex objects with revealing clothing. If they want beauty pageants, then one of the rules should be: Does this child appear to be 10, or is she being touted as 20 in a ten-year old body? Points lost for inappropriate aging and styling.
It serves no purpose, whatsoever, to use children's bodies to sell adult items (unless it is something perverted). It's a real simple fix, complain--a lot! to the groups that support this kind of usury. Withhold your money from their income--don't buy it! And be sure to tell them why. If you hit someone in the pocketbook, it hurts them much more than punching them in the nose.
(I think that the little girl currently appearing in the pic with this article looks like something from a child-abusing porn/pedophilia magazine.)
zapper...good suggestions!...child's behaviour must be age appropriate...or loose points...that might actually work ...'cause a banning rarely works....
molested children will "go along" with adults & keep secret how they really feel...ditto for kids in pagents
a child lacks power & so they say all is OK...
it's a survival mechanism...
never to be confused with the way a child would feel given the chance to grow under normal conditions
love this idea
hopefully, the French will be successful & others will follow suit !
Fine! Just try and get Toddlers and Tiaras off TLC, to many people go in for this sordid trash and it all comes down to money.
Vive la France! Who would have thought those oversexed Frenchies would be the first to condemn the sexploitation of children. The U.S., a country that gives only lip service to morality, will probably be the last to follow suit. The only morality that the U.S. government knows starts with the letter $.