Push Up Bikinis for Tweens Aren't About Sex
Did you hear Abercrombie Kids is marketing push-up bikini tops to young kids? Ready to beat the "OMG, they're sexualizing our kids" drum? Hold that thought!
Abercrombie Kids is marketing push-up bikini tops to our tweens and teens. Seriously, folks, it's not about sexualization. It's about reality.
According to Sociological Images, the blog that seems to have broken this tempest in a teapot, the brand is focused on girls 7 to 14. That's why they're worried. But I've got a news flash for you: every item in a store is not made for every person who walks in. And that's what's happening here.
The smallest size for these push-up tops that now have multiple sites warning us that our little girls are being sold a tale of "big boobies make you better" is a small. According to the Abercrombie Kids size chart, that's for girls 56 to 58 inches tall with a 27.5 to 28.5 bust. The average girl won't hit 56 inches until she's 11 or 12. Not 7 or 8.
Do I need to spell out the difference between a 7-year-old and her 12-year-old sister? A little girl with boobs is icky. I'm not putting my 5-year-old in a bikini any time soon -- forget the push-up issue.
But a tween who is beginning to fill out is pretty dang normal. And one who wants to can be filed under "not news." Tweens may not have a heck of a lot going on up in the chest area, but they are plenty conscious of how they look on the beach. You can talk up how breast size does not mean a thing in the real world, but it will take years for their emotions to catch up with their brains on that one.
A little push-up can go a long way toward making them feel like their top won't fall off on the beach (because there's nothing to HOLD IT THERE). So is it sexualization to make kids comfortable? Not really.
I dare say a parent who is buying this knows that a push-up top on a swimsuit is more about acknowledging puberty is a painful process. It's a time when girls feel awkward, when they start standing out from their friends. And when you're a tweenage girl, you don't want to be the different one!
What do you think? Much ado about nothing? Or a big problem?
Image via Abercrombie Kids
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sassykat122
:-), you bout had my hackles raised on this one because I definetly would not be putting this on a 7 year old. And I about said I wouldn't on a 12 year old then i stopped and remembered what it was like for me at 12 with really no chest to speak of and being horribly self conscious about it. I would have done anything to add a couple extra inches onto my bust just to look normal. However for those parents who are about to yell at you they just need to stop and remember that they are the parent and all they have to do is just not buy it if they feel that strongly about it.
Jerichos_Mommy
I don't have a daughter so it is hard to say what I would do. I guess it really depends on the tween and her parents. I developed early getting my first bra at age 10 a 34 B, I wasn't teased for being too small but for being too big, My initial reaction was girls this young don't need push-ups. However after reading the first reply I can see where this may be a confidence booster if a girl is more flat chested.
ChiMomWriter
sassykat122
ChiMom...what facebook page, I would be interested to check it out.
LaurenElyssa
I see what you're saying, but the fact that we're saying that padding will boost the esteem of young girls is just sad to me. Breast size shouldn't be a concern, whether it's when they're 10 or 100. Boosting their esteem this early with "padding" only supports the notion that ones breast size matters. Reality sucks, I guess ... because I myself own several pairs of padded bras.
Julie Thompson
There will be no push up bikinis on my 12 year old. TWELVE is still a child!!
Cherina M. Davis
MommaGreenhalge
All I can say about this is that I am so glad God did not bless me with girls, despite my begging and pleading. I was never allowed to wear a bikini. That's right, never. At least not without a shirt over it. Even now, I wear tankinis with shorts, because I have never seen the purpose in wearing so little in public. You might call me a prude. That's okay. If I had girls instead of boys, I would probably have the same rules my parents had for me. Except I would require that the top of the swimsuit had a little bit of padding. No one wants to see "headlights" on a child, or anyone else for that matter.
MrsGusty
Bikinis on little girls are just wrong, push-up or not. Even at 12, a girl is still too young to be sexualized in the way a bikini intends. My girl will be wearing a one-piece or a tankini as long as I have a say in the matter.
Ame