jueves, 27 de febrero de 2014

HEALTH: TO BE OR NOT TO BE PRETTY


THIS weekend, in a first for Victoria and Australia, Universal Royalty - a Texas-based company specialising in glamour beauty pageants - will hold a modelling and talent competition for babies and children.
On the face of it, the event looks like harmless fun. Everyone knows how much kids love to dress up and how much pleasure parents get dressing up their children.
However, there are some disturbing aspects to this particular style of "glamour pageant".
Many in Victoria are disturbed by US-style child beauty contests. Since this event was flagged this year, the glamour pageant has divided our community.
In Melbourne, the pageant, to feature on the controversial cable TV showToddlers and Tiaras, will be open to Australian babies as young as six months. It will include a compulsory beauty competition, modelling and make-up workshops. Organisers have also set up exclusive deals with local media - perhaps in an attempt to guarantee positive coverage.
Make no mistake about it, child beauty pageants are big news and also big business. An internet post from an organiser of the Melbourne pageant estimates the industry is worth about $5 billion worldwide.
Parents can be expected to pay about $400 to enter their child in the Australian event, but the spin-off costs for costumes, make-up and dance lessons can spiral into the thousands.
Most Victorians are not opposed to baby competitions at local shopping centres. We don't mind our kids dressing up as fairies or pirates and we actively encourage them during book week to dress up as their favourite character.
But when our children are "glammed up" and objectified to look like mature attractive women, alarm bells must ring. Governments have a responsibility to keep our children safe and to preserve their innocence when they are at risk.
There are many parents who are far from comfortable seeing very young children strutting their stuff in split gowns, heels, a spray tan, waxed legs and eyebrows, curled hair and caked-on make-up. It beggars belief that these competitions are really all about self-esteem, poise, and etiquette.
Psychologists and children's advocates agree that beauty contests do not form part of a child's healthy emotional development and that they can actually hurt our children in the long term.
Many also argue that beauty contests teach our kids the wrong values. There are more important qualities than being pretty. We have always taught our children this and it's never occurred to us to ever enter our six-year-old daughter in a beauty pageant.
Child psychologists also warn of the damaging long-term effects of these competitions. Experts see a clear association between these types of events and the development of body image problems, eating disorders, and depression.
All this leaves me and many Victorians asking, whatever happened to letting kids be kids? Let them run around at the local park. Let them muck around in the back yard or kick the footy at the local oval.
Importantly, let their imaginations flourish and encourage them to read. Let them play. Let them learn. Let them be happy.
I think there's a case to better regulate this industry and that's exactly what we are talking about - it is an industry where large profits are being made.
If the Baillieu Government is interested in such regulation, they can count on Labor's support to develop and 

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