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media messages
Formspring: Enabling the Cruelest Form of Bullying with the Greatest of Ease.
48314 years
Having just read the post below, I am still speechless…which is fine because this Mama said it all so well:
http://www.rachelsimmons.com/2011/06/guest-blog-a-mothers-battle-to-get-her-daughter-off-formspring/
I adore her apt description: Formspring is the present-day version of the bathroom stall on steroids, enabling the cruelest form of bullying with the greatest of ease.
Are you aware of the website Formspring? As the mother of 8 and 5-year old girls, I was not…yet…but am so glad to know about it early so that I can do a little early intervention and hopefully prevention.
You know, it’s crazy–I feel like me, and so many other parents and professionals out there, are putting their hearts and souls into helping girls cope with bullying–then a site like this comes along and makes money hand over first with no purpose or objective other than to wreck young girls. Where is the conscience?
Beauty Pressure: Innoculating our Kids
21414 years
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ei6JvK0W60I&w=425&h=349]
The article I posted below reminded me of this film clip from the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty. I suggest this clip to parents and professionals in my Friendship & Other Weapons curriculum, as a way of teaching young girls about the impact of media messages–sort of an innoculation measure, with the idea that when girls are aware of the media’s intentions, they are better able to resist its negative influences.
I would love to hear your reactions to the video and feedback on how you talk with your kids about media messages and beauty pressure.
Teaching Our Daughters to Love Their Bodies
45114 years
I love this post about Teaching Our Daughters to Love Their Bodies, by Andrea Owen. “I know I can’t shelter my daughter from seeing and sometimes believing that she needs to be prettier, thinner, firmer, sexier, smoother, younger-looking, etc. But, I can sure as hell tell her from my own mouth that her body is the most perfect thing created, just as it is. That it was meant for kicking ass…”
http://thefeministbreeder.com/guest-post-teaching-our-daughters-to-love-their-bodies/
This is a key lesson in the Friendship & Other Weapons curriculum as well; part of fortifying girls against the pressures of bullying has to do with teaching them to be proud of who they are and the bodies they live in, rather than becoming overwhelmed and swept away by media messages to the contrary.
Seven Going on Seventeen: What Parents Can Do About Sexualized Media Messages for Girls
71014 years
“In each case, girls are being presented with an extremely narrow definition of femininity – one that is largely focused on how they are seen by others.”
Check out this great article that includes helpful guidelines for parents about talking with their daughters about media messages. I (more…)
Free to Be…Not Anymore
102614 years
For all of you children of the 1970’s like me who spent hours and hours of your childhood listening to Marlo Thomas’ Free to Be album, check out this amazing article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/marlo-thomas/marlo-thomas-bullying_b_866313.html
“Every boy in this land grows to be his own man,
In this land, every girl grows to be her own woman.”
5 Dangers of Too Sexy, Too Soon Ads Aimed at Our Girls
22414 years
The other day, I was having one of my proud Mama moments, introducing my soon-to-be eight year-old too New Moon Girls.com and talking to her about why I valued the type of self-esteem building content on this type of site over the self-image crushing messages of many other popular girl-focused websites.
For the first five minutes, I had her rapt attention and eager interest! Then, too suddenly, she saw the part on the site about “Create Your Own Avatar.” The first thing she wanted to do: skip the hand-drawn Avatar selections available on New Moon Girls and click over to Barbie.com to download one of their images.
Seriously?!
Think in your mind of how Barbies are built…now multiply whatever you have in mind by less clothing, smaller waists, higher heels, and more makeup. Now, you know what the site has to offer in terms of the avatar choices it presents to young girl users.
The irony. My best laid plans jilted!
Of course…I know…there is a great learning moment here for my daughter…an impactful conversation to be had…but WOW did it strike me in the face what an uphill battle we Moms face in providing our daughters with quality media content and fortifying them from the ubiquitous messages of thinner, sexier, smaller online, in print, and on TV.
5 Dangers of Too Sexy, Too Soon Ads Aimed at Our Girls.
This is a great article written by child expert, Dr. Michele Borba, on the subject, including helpful advice for parents on how to buck the prolific negative images aimed at young girls.
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Finding Kind: A Documentary Film about Friendship in Girl World
144814 years
Some days, I troll around on Facebook browsing at the silly, fun goings-on in the lives of my friends. Other days, I stumble upon the most interesting, powerful links. Today was a lucky day–one that makes me ask: with all of my work around girl bullying, how did I not know about this group?? Please check out the Kind Campaign and their incredible documentary film, Finding Kind:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/user/KindCampaign]
Monster High Brings the Power of Kindness to Girls
115114 years
I now hate to admit it, but whenever my daughters and I approached the Monster High Dolls display at our local Target, I intentionally called their attention to something else in the aisle, trying to distract them from the dolls. My rationale: upon quick glance, I assumed they were the next generation of Bratz dolls, the hypersexualized barbie-esque doll that I promised never to buy.
Imagine my surprise when I came upon this article which corrected my off-the-mark assumption. According to Mattel rep, Lori Patel, “The Monster High brand uses the monster metaphor to show girls that it is ok to be different and that our unique differences should be celebrated.””
Real Girls vs. Media Girls
79414 years
Check out this GREAT video clip from New Moon Girls, showing Real Girls Molly, Brooke & Alex talking about their actual lives vs. the way girls are portrayed in the media.
In my upcoming book, Friendship & Other Weapons: Group Activities to Help Young Girls Cope with Bullying, I have a section dedicated to helping girls become critical thinkers when it comes to the media’s influences; I love the fact that these three awesome girls are already carefully evaluating–rather than eagerly absorbing–media content.
>Parents, Don’t Dress Your Girls Like Tramps by LZ Granderson
79414 years
>”Friends bow to peer pressure. Parents say, ‘No, and that’s the end of it.'”
Just came across this article on CNN.com by LZ Granderson. It is so brilliantly written and so completely true regarding the clothing options available for young girls…and a parent’s role in making decisions for their kids–cool points notwithstanding!
http://www.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/04/19/granderson.children.dress/index.html?hpt=T2
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