Campaign to stop retailers selling products that prematurely sexualise children - let us know what you think...

[JustineMumsnet]

So quite a few folk on the MN campaigns thread mentioned that an issue they'd like to see MN get involved in is the premature sexualisation of children.

So we've put together an outline for a potential campaign, along the lines of Let girls be girls, summarising the issues and some of the research. The aim is to encourage retailers to make a simple, public pledge that commits them to selling only products which do not sexualise children.

Please do have a read and let us know your thoughts, ideas, suggestions.

Thanks.
MNHQ

Huge article in the Guardian this morning!

LongTallJosie - that NEXT 'I LOve Shopping' T is awful. Talk about mother's projecting adult stuff on their kids. Small children should HATE shopping.

I have both boys and girls and I have to say that I had noticed more the boys' issue than the girls. I regularly shop from Next and I find there is a younger girls range, which is very cute, I have never had a problem with that store in particular. I have noticed heels on girls' shoes and bras on toddlers which I find weird (why does a toddler or indeed a little girl need a bra?)- but they seem to be everywhere!

With boys though, I think it's worse, all clothes and toys and cartoons aimed at boys are very violent from an early age. I really think this is a huge problem. Trying to get the boys away from it is a trial tbh. I dislike also all the sports stuff - why does a little boy want to wear rugby or football gear......don't get me started.

Anyway, I support the campaign although I really do not think Next is a great example of this, there a much much worse stores I can think of.

This is so wonderful. Congratulations. It's really tremendous in a very tremendous way. What a great achievement.

Thank you so much for starting this campaign. It's wonderful and lllllloooooonnngggg overdue.

I haven't read all 553 messages but I'm sure someone else has mentioned the magazines like Zoo / Nuts which adorn the newsagent's and supermarket's shelves in full view of kids.
When DD was little ( a couple of years ago) we stopped at a service station and I was appalled to see all the lad's mags just a couple of shelves away from my daughter's magazines (CBEEBIES etc). I complained. Then on subsequent visits to newsagents and supermarkets I realised that it was totally normal for all stores to put magazines with half naked cover girls on the main shelves NOT top shelf.
I often wonder what people visiting from more traditional countries must think of us in the UK - allowing women to be portrayed in such a way in full view of children, families, elders.

And clothes without any slogans or messages or pictures on too can look better but that's a marketing rather than a sexualisation issue.

It's all very interesting - see the mumsnet burkha thread etc and the issues discussion on feminism and divide between femininsts who are anti porn and those who aren't and women who want women covered, never mind girls and then there's also the children's rights issue and the question of children's sexual feelings which are never much talked about. However, most parents are fairly united in not wanting very young girls to be trading on their looks, would rather they had a role model of Angela Merkel or Lady Thatcher than a supermodel and they dress and bring up their children accordingly.

Plenty of religious groups cover children. There are lots of little girls in Islamic dress a short distance from me. Also the goregous looking Brethern girls in head scarves, all those orthodox Jewish girls too and then there's this look in the US - www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/31/prairie-dress-fashion-opr_n_181032.html

We all have those choices .

I am sure it will be very good PR for M&S to bring out a traditional range however. It can in effect be "cheap Boden". Now whether that causes an issue between or with mumsnet advertisers is another matter. All interesting stuff.

There is another answer - make your own clothes, don't go shopping, don't watch TV or buy second hand clothes. I never shop with children. It's vacuous and boring. Hate shopping. Perhaps more time in church or just thinking whilst sewing might do men (and women if they are involved in dressing children) good.

I am glad they have got rid of these terrible things but you know why little girls may want to wear them when you look at the toys nowadays.

There are a set of dolls called 'Bratz" that look like they should be working street corners, not the sort of things young impressionable girls should be playing with.

Totally support this campaign: as mum of a tall 6 year old girl who wears 7-8 clothes am finding it increasingly hard to find stuff that doesn't make her look like a miniturised Hannah montana. Particularly disappointed with Next and M and S this season - lots of skinny jeans and teenage style clothes. Two big concerns - skinny jeans are restrictive and as my daughter says " I can't run and climb in those", and this need for 6 year olds to look like older teens. Smacks of the Victorian era when girls were put in restrictive miniture adult style clothes and weren't expected to play but be seen and not heard. Thought we'd progressed away from this with suffragettes but apparently not. One of the big problems is that Next and M and S split their size 0-3, 3-5 and then 5-12. what a 5 year old should be wearing is nothing like what a 12 year old should be, hence 5 year old look over sexualised. Much better the H and M split which goes 1-8 the 8-12, I've found far more appropriate clothes there this season. Gen I'm not an H and M fan due to suspect ethics regarding production of their clothes, but at the moment I feel forced to chose between the better quality, better ethics of Next and M and S and the premature sexualisation of my daughter. Long way to go yet. On a sl diff note, boys clothes are increasingly violent - anyone seen rotting skulls on Next 5 year old t shirts, and if we are saying that over sexualisation of girls leads to violnece towards them from boys, then surely the problems with boys clothes promoting said violnce should be addressed

ebgb I am interested to know what people consider as too grown up? What do you think about denim jackets, gilets, leggings, cropped jackets/cardigans, shrugs, bikinis, tankinis, ballet pumps, ugg style boots? Feel free to include other things if you think they are too grown up as well.

Can we get Matalan on board too please, I saw these overly sexy tops when shopping for my DD's the other day. And plenty of leggings with lace trim (or AIBU because they remind me of Madonna's "slutty" phase?) and a ladder-back t-shirt amongst other things. Yuck!!

Olivia Lichtenstein in the Daily Mail - shame they forgot to mention this campaign!

Hello, I've just joined Mumsnet on the strength of this campaign.I think it is commendable and long overdue.
I became acutely aware of how some companies market completely inappropriate clothes (in this case shoes) for very young girls quite a few years ago when shopping in good old Woolies!
Woolies were the main outlet for the 'Ladybird' brand who made and possibly still make and market the most appalling boots aimed at five/six year olds and up. They had a high heel and a tapering to (which qualified them as inappropriate for obvious reasons), but more than this was the styling. They were black leatherette embellished with buckles, chains and maybe even a padlock! More suitable wear for a mature dominatrix. Of course I always intended to right a letter complaining and questioning their design team's motivation, but ashamedly I never did.
(I should check out the website to see if they are still peddling such designs).
I have an eight year old daughter myself, who has a growing interest in fashion and all that that implies. I try to openly discuss with her why I think some clothes are not appropriate and how she will be a child for a short time, but a grown up for most of her life! when she will be able to choose all by herself. I also have to acknowledge her growing desire to define herself and her need to feel she is fashionable. I hope through our negotiations we are getting the balance right. I hope as she grows up her choices will be informed by her awareness of herself as a rounded and expressive human being and not just a sex object.

Can't believe how long it is since I posted on mumsnet (joined waaay back in 2001). Anyway, I have a friend that runs a business running drama & play classes for preschoolers and she's keen to support the campaign. Do you have any blog/website badges she could use?

I feel this is partly the fault of Mums themselves- sorry Mums. Children as young as 6 & 7 are given disco parties, which are innocent in themselves, but encourage children to grow up too fast. Teenagers have always wanted the new and exciting, and by taking away the excitent of adolescent parties and clothes, teenagers are naturally going to turn to other things to experiment with such as alcohol, drugs and sex, at a far earlier age.

Expect that someone has already pointed out that one of Primark's clothing lines for girls is called 'Diva'

Another newsflash:
Debenhams have signed up too!

I think this is the most important parenting issue you have campaigned on so far. While your campaigns on pregnancy loss have been well-run, other organisations like SANDS also do this kind of important work.
But to have such a major push to stop trashy clothes being sold in children's fashion is wonderful, well done MN.
I am sure John Lewis and Boots will sign up, as (along with Boden and M & S) they are the two main shops I buy for dd from. I will not have slogans or adult styling in the house. No black or grey marl either. She six. She can dress like an extra from Threads when she is old enough to fund her own wardrobe.

Now can we have a similar campaign to get less militarised clothes for pre-teen boys? Ds (mild-mannered, likes Poirot, plays chess) would happily prowl the streets covered in skulls and camouflage

Just checked out Woolies web site, specifically 'girls shoes'. Although they don't have the style I describe in my earlier post, they do have a large selection of shoes which are indistinguishable from those designed for women and they all start from size ten, which by my reckoning is the size worn by girls as young as four and five.
Not only do these shoes turn 'tiny tots' into 'mini me' adult women, but will cause all sorts of damage to their growing feet and to their posture. They remind me very much of the old and now outlawed practice of foot binding of old Japan/China? This practice would completely disable the women who's feet had been bound, and also render them constantly sexually available.
I don't think it is too strong a point to say that companies like Woolworths are colluding in the damage of young growing (female) feet, and encouraging the young (female) wearers to be inactive and passive, when children are naturally the opposite of inactive and passive, and finally Woolworths are incouraging the sexualisation of very young girls. Woolworths tend to cater to a consumer who, on the whole is not encouraged to reflect on these issues, and therefore Woolworths has a responsibility to reflect on these issues as a retailer. Please can we target Woolworths.
PS. Re: my first post - I do know that it is 'write' not 'right' and 'toe' should have an e on the end! I hate typos, or rather my own!

Sorry for my late arrival to this discussion!! Recently been highlighted again in the news though and wanted to comment on the boys side of things.

As a mum of a boy and a girl, I appreciate that boys don't have such blatant issues in terms of padded bikinis but there is plenty of boys fashion styled around 'gang' or 'street' culture which should be equally discouraged. I want to dress my boy like a child, not a mini rap artist!

Completely agree with DonnaMB, as I have a boy myself of five, and have so far been able to control what he wears. I appreciate that boys are as vunerable to marketing, if in different ways, Macho/aggressive/posturing seems to be quite a powerful theme. It's as though the market wants to control the development of our children as future consumers more than anything else, and we as parents must take control of this market ourselves and dictate the agenda as to what is appropriate. The conditioning of boys is I think every bit as important and so 'let boys be boys' should perhaps be a campaign to run alongside. Certainly the big brands who have taken up the cause should consider issues in relation to both boys and girls.

Wish Next would get on board with this. My dd now 7 is very tall and has always had to wear clothes that are 1-2 years ahead of her actual age. I found that Next's little girl's clothes were usually quite nice - then dd hit 5 and needed age 7 stuff. Good god, the stuff was appalling; slashed, black, grey, neon pink, one shouldered hooker style tat.
Complained vehemently in several stores and most of the staff agreed that the stuff was pretty hardcore for wee girls but "what can you do?"
Good on mumsnet! Let's hope more stores sign up soon.

I have joined mumsnet today as I feel very strongly we have been sexualising our girl children from an earlier and earlier age for some time. Having worked with sexually abused children for many years I want to support any campaingn that highlights this issue.

Coming in thick and fast now, we're welcoming Hush Puppies who have also signed up to the campaign!

I have long felt that we have over sexualised children, and think this is a conversation well worth having. Personally I am in favour of a campaign to let children be children and stop the rush to make them into adults, clothing for both sexes, currently is mini adult wear instead of clothes created for childhood, fun stuff that they can climb trees in and get covered in paint, that inspires their imagination and helps them learn who they are. So yes to getting rid of play boy for girls, yes to getting rid of sexy clothing for kids, and yes to creative thinking from those who are creating the products to think about designing for children rather than mini adults.

I suppose middle class mothers with more money to spend just avoid the rubbish and school uniforms and also specified school shoes ensure children wear appropriate school clothes to an extent too and ensuring your children are with a peer grouup where no parents allow this stuff. Sadly some of us have to pay to buy a separate education amongst similar children or indeed choose schools by house price.

David C's child is at a state schools - sacrificed on the altar of her parents' politics, poor thing and I bet she is subjected to more bad influences however good the state C of E place is than were she at many private schools they might have chosen for her.

There is nothing to stop fathers or mother making clothes though, is there or buying second hand.

I have had two daughters who are now through the teenage years too and that's a different stage again but not what this issue is about.

The publicity will gain sales of course for some of the objectionable products if they are not withdrawn.

Ensuring girls wear clothes which mean they are happy to climb trees and roll in mud is a useful tactic. Mind you my children have always looked pretty scruffy. Not that I mind. I think if they have holes in the knees of their trousers you are a good parent.

FWIW, it (the campaign) was on Thought for the Day this morning, which is nice!