Sexualization of Early Childhood

The sexualization of early childhood is becoming a big issue in our society.  I feel that often, children are left out of the equation when there is a creation of music and media.  We forget about the impact of young children when playing songs on the radio, or complaining about our bodies in front of them.  These exposures can dramatically affect our youth and we need to be wary of what we are allowing our children to view and do as far as sex and violence. 

There have been many examples of sexualization and young children throughout my personal and professional life.  I feel that these are difficult to talk about, as some of them are so horrific and shocking that it is hard to write about them or state them aloud.  At a former place of employment, I used to notice the sexualization of young children often.  I would listen to the conversations of my four and five year old female students and be shocked with the topics.  For example, one day, I overheard three of my female students discussing how “fat” they were, and who was the “fattest.”  One of the girls was very upset about this discussion, as she was deemed “fattest.”  I went over to speak with the girls about how silly it was to worry about how “fat” they are when they are so young.  I told them that as long as we are healthy and happy, these things simply do not matter and that we are all beautiful.  One of the little girls responded, “Right.  Miss Raina is fat and her boyfriend loves her.”  It upset me that these young girls were equating love with body size.  “A narrow definition of femininity and sexuality encourages girls to focus heavily on appearance and sex appeal. They learn at a very young age that their value is determined by how beautiful, thin “hot,” and sexy they are” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 2). 

Another example of early sexualization can be found on television.  There are so many shows that not only expose young children to sexual images and acts, but actually display them as sexual objects.  For example, the show Toddlers and Tiaras is disgusting.  It puts small children in tons of makeup, hair pieces, fake eyelashes, and barely-there outfits and parades them around stage doing suggestive dances, motions, and facial expressions.  They are judged mostly on their looks and their ability to schmooze the judges.  In addition to the fact that these pageants actually exist, we are now putting them on television, leaving these girls vulnerable to stalkers, pedifiles, and their own self-esteem issues.  “Many industries make an obscene amount of money using sex and violence to market their products to children” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 2). 

Children are also discovering sexual acts at a very early age.  While working in the early childhood field, I have heard young children comment on penis-size, as well as how large their mother’s breasts are.  I have also heard of children as young as six engaging in sexual acts with other young children, such as licking private areas repetitively, showing different body parts to one another, even kinky things such as choking and putting their fingers inside of each other in groups.  It is disturbing to say the least, and it makes one wonder where they learn about such things. 

Over sexualization can have a profound negative impact on the development of young children.  We are allowing our children to be exposed to sex and warped body images at a young age and not taking the time to explain their confusion or answer their questions.  We are giving children full reign of their households; allowing them to choose video games, television program, and have unsupervised time using the internet.  This is allowing children to look at images and participate in activities that are inappropriate for their age group.  As early childhood professionals, I believe that the best way to help limit the negative impact that social sexualization is having on our youth is to educate their parents.  If we provide parents with resources and information on the negative impact that sexualization can have on their children, they may be more wary as to what they expose their children to.  In addition, I feel that it’s important that we address issues of sex and violence with our students as they arise in the classroom.  These are sensitive subjects and should be discussed with families prior to being a topic of conversation with their children.  I feel that working with parents will be vital in supporting our children through the confusion of this sexualized world. 

Thinking about this topic this week, I have come to realize that this is an issue that stretches beyond economic status, race, and gender.  It is something that all of our children are being exposed to and we need to do our best to shield them from these harsh and disturbing images if we are to help them salvage their youth.  Reading this article and really drawing on my personal and professional experiences has helped me to realize what an issue this is becoming and I will be sure to make this a priority when I return to an early childhood curriculum.  “Today’s sexualized childhood is very distressing, there’s no way around that. We believe that understanding and action are the best antidotes to the alarm this content will cause” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p. 7-8).   

Reference

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf