Matt Chandler posted this on his twitter today - it is an article from Redbook (I don't read Redbook, but for a secular magazine they were pretty spot on in this article). An excerpt (I'm taking this out of the middle of the article, so reading it in it's entirety will help):
"The terrifying truth: It starts with princesses"
"You may balk - what's sexy about a little girl in a pink princess costume? But sexy, as it turns out, is not the same thing as sexualized. Sexualization is not only imposing sexuality on children before they're ready and viewing girls as sexual objects, but also valuing a girl for her appearance over her other attributes. "Princesses are just a phase," Orenstein writes, but they mark a girl's "first foray into the mainstream culture...And what was the first thing that culture told her about being a girl? Not that she was competent, strong, creative, or smart but that every little girl wants - or should want - to be the Fairest of Them All."
Orenstein builds her case with stats showing that the more a girl is exposed to girly-girl culture, the more vulnerable she is to depression, eating disorders, distorted body image, and risky sexual behavior.
I couldn't post the whole article, but it is worth the read here: "Little Girls Gone Wild"
I would love to know...do you agree with the article? What are your thoughts, opinions?
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