Grown-up clothing on little girls

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Grown-up clothing on little girls

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Sexualization harms girls in lots of ways and of course, girls are sexualized in lots of ways too, through the clothing, the fashion choices, images in the media. The American Psychological Association did a study not long ago which found that girls who are heavily exposed to sexualized images from a young age are more prone to the three most common mental health problems for women and girls which are depression, eating disorders and low self esteem. So people often think that sexualization perhaps is a trivial issue or that it doesn't really do any harmful or lasting damage, but in fact, it does. It affects girls' self esteem, it can lead to some of these other disorders and it also tremendously wastes girls' psychic energy. A huge amount of energy goes into girls thinking about how to get made up, how to dress, following certain fashion, how to present themselves in a sexualized way rather than using the energy in many different ways that would be much better for them. The most harmful thing that happens with sexualization is the girls learn to sexualize themselves. They learn to turn themselves into objects. So it isn't just that they are seen that way by the culture or seen that way by boys, it's that they see themselves and judge themselves that way.

Watch Video: Grown-up clothing on little girls by Jean Kilbourne, EdD, ...

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Jean Kilbourne, EdD

Author & Social Theorist

Jean Kilbourne is internationally recognized for her groundbreaking work on the image of women in advertising and her critical studies of alcohol and tobacco advertising. Her films, lectures, and television appearances have been seen by millions of people throughout the world. She was named by The New York Times Magazine as one of the three most popular speakers on college campuses...

She is the author of the award-winning book Can’t Buy My Love: How Advertising Changes the Way We Think and Feel and So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids. The prize-winning films based on her lectures include Killing Us Softly, Spin the Bottle, and Slim Hopes. She is a frequent guest on radio and television programs, including “The Today Show” and “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” She has served as an advisor to the Surgeon General and has testified for the U.S. Congress. She holds an honorary position as Senior Scholar at the Wellesley Centers for Women.

According to Susan Faludi, “Jean Kilbourne’s work is pioneering and crucial to the dialogue of one of the most underexplored, yet most powerful, realms of American culture —advertising. We owe her a great debt.” A member of the Italian Parliament said, “Hearing Jean Kilbourne is a profound experience. Audiences leave her feeling that they have heard much more than another lecture, for she teaches them to see themselves and their world differently.”

She has received many awards, including the Lecturer of the Year award from the National Association for Campus Activities. A more unusual tribute was paid when an all-female rock group in Canada named itself Kilbourne in her honor.

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