His Hobbies Include Playing In The Dirt

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We all know the questions that were raised during the murder investigation of JonBenet Ramsey regarding child beauty pageants. We now have the answer to one of them – forensic scientists have ruled out the Ramsey family having any direct culpability in the tiny blonde’s slaying, by DNA analysis. However, the question of indirect culpability still remains, and that question is pertinent for the throngs of little girls – and yes, little boys – who are steered into beauty pageants even today.

Is it actually the children who want to be considered the most beautiful seven-year-old or five-year-old or even two-year old? Or is it the parents, usually the mothers, who are fulfilling some inner competitive drive and who push the children into this adult game so early in life? According to research by Harvard sociologist Hilary Levey, the primary motivating factor is that parents often see childhood competition – as opposed to participation – as a stepping stone to bigger and better things, whether they be fame and fortune or even an Ivy League education one day.
http://sociology.princeton.edu/GraduateProgram/Job/

Is there really any question, though, as to whose idea the competition is when a tiny girl in a pageant begins to cry, and her mother rushes out to wipe the mascara that is running down her face because it is ruining her chance at a win? When the child won’t stop, the mother grabs her by the hand and drags her offstage while the announcer is spouting nonsense including the fact that the two-year old’s “...life ambition is to bring happiness to all who come into contact with her.”
http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2000/06.08/beauty.html
Are these parents really interested in teaching their children about honesty and good sportsmanship – or in this case, perhaps congeniality – when they replace lost baby teeth with false teeth or get the child hair extensions when it’s too short to style in a particularly popular way?

Parents gave Levey a wide variety of reasons for entering their children in beauty pageants:
- It gives the child confidence and reduces shyness.
- It helps them make friends.
- The child learns about real life competition and how to deal with it.
- The parent was in pageants, and it was a good experience.
- The parent feels it will start the child on an early path to success.

However, the HBO series Undercover America presented one feature called “Living Dolls: The Making of a Child Beauty Queen” that seems to agree it is primarily wish fulfillment or escapism on the part of the overzealous parent that motivates them to thrust their child into such a sexualized, adult venue.
http://www.post-gazette.com/tv/20010513owen.asp
In fact, the main “doll” in the segment’s mother actually spends $70,000 in one year on pageants. That includes outfits, entry fees, travel money, hair stylists, makeup artists, coaches, and additional “needs” that cause the other children in the family to sacrifice both material and emotional support that is focused, instead, on the pageant entrant.

So, how can overzealous parents recognize when they are the instigators of the drive for queen – or king – status? The signs should be fairly simple when considered in the world-renowned format that Jeff Foxworthy made so popular. In other words, you might be an overzealous parent if
- You have to manipulate your little star into practicing or even performing by explaining how disappointed the whole family will be if she doesn’t.
- You little beauty would rather be behind the scenes eating popsicles with the other two-year-olds than out on the catwalk.
- Your child’s true talent isn’t singing or dancing but rather making mud pies and finger painting the dog.
- You have to look for designer diapers that will match the $1200 “princess” dress you just bought.
- You’ve had to take a second mortgage on your house to pay for all the necessary pageant paraphernalia.
- You find yourself barking orders like a drill sergeant: “Stand up straight!! Bigger smile!! Float, don’t just walk!!”
And finally, most important of all, you might be an overzealous parent if you make your child continue to compete in beauty pageants even after they have told you they don’t want to.

Do you believe children should be pushed into competitive situations at a young age? What do you think about beauty pageants for young girls? Do you let your children compete? We want to know your opinions, good and bad! Leave us a comment.