Let’s Put The Miley Cyrus/Vanity Fair/Annie Leibovitz Photo Scandal in Perspective
People are upset about THAT photo of Miley Cyrus, the 15 year old teen queen who took a scandalous picture showing her back that appeared in Vanity Fair magazine. The photo is so overexposed–in the media, I mean–that I’m not even going to bother posting it. You can just do a Google Image search if you want to see it.
My concern isn’t for Miley Cyrus at all. After all, she took the pic and I don’t feel she was under a lot of undue duress when the picture was taken. In fact, I don’t think the photo was all that racy, either, and I don’t know where this sudden concern for young girls is coming from. This is the current opening picture of the Limited Too website advertising swimwear:
If we’re so concerned about 15 year old showing their bony backs in public, why don’t we put a stop to the slutty clothes they’re selling to young girls at the mall? If we’re really so concerned, why don’t we tell companies like Limited Too and other girls clothing companies that they can no longer sell low waisted panties and swimsuits along with tiny triangle tops that show, surprise surprise, bony backs?
There was an excellent article in Slate magazine about this very topic. The author wrestles with the idea that, if she wants to buy school clothes for her daughter at the mall, her daughter has to dress like a hoochy. Apparently, that’s the market for girls clothing today.
I’m not saying that dressing sexy is right or wrong. I’m no longer a teen or tween girl, and I don’t have any children. I’ll leave that decision to parents. In the meantime, though I’d really like to read stories about something other than Miley Cyrus/Vanity Fair/Annie Leibovitz. I’m ready for a new scandal.
As a parent, I find this disturbing. As a transcriber of psychiatric dictation, I come across many patients with the diagnosis of pedophilia. Are there more predators than there were in the past? Or are we more aware?
Regardless, it’s disturbing that the greatest loss today is childhood. At a time when ideals are being formed, we exploit little girls and make them into women and then wonder why they are being attacked by predators.
Of course, it’s up to parents to make choices. We can choose not to park our children in front of electronic media that stifles imagination, telling them to go outside instead (provided that outside is safe). We can encourage them to read. We can reduce the over-scheduling that turns daily life into a mad rush between appointments and lessons.
And certainly we can choose to buy age-appropriate clothing. It requires great courage in the face of peer pressure, but in the long run you will know that your child’s unfolding may have been a bit slower. Not a bad thing at all, since you have many more years to be an adult, and childhood goes by in a heartbeat.
A recent study showed that children who were able to resist temptation and delay gratification grew up to be more resilient adults who are capable of making better decisions. And this is a lesson that needs to be modeled. It doesn’t happen by itself.
That’s good news for the young ladies whose parents say no to the midriff-baring, overly tight clothing.
But most especially it may be the difference between acting on impulse and having the ability to resist. The potential future pedophiles.
Elizabeth
May 5, 2008 at 10:06 am