Posted on 10/26/2010 10:45:10 AM PDT by Kaslin
Halloween is around the corner, so you’re expecting a steady train of ghosts, Hollywood heroes, and princesses to knock on your door.
Well, brace yourself. Princesses look different these days. The pre-teen and teenage girls who show up are likely to be wearing trampy costumes that say “s-e-x,” rather than “trick or treat.” We all know that girls are being sexualized by the culture at younger and younger ages in their daily wear. But Halloween costumes have taken things to a new low, making our little girls into sex objects even midst what is supposed to be an evening of childhood fun. The sad reality is that we live in a pop culture that is obsessed with trying to make our boys and girls think about sex all the time.
Lots of parents have issues with Halloween for religious reasons – their consciences don’t allow them to feel comfortable celebrating what they see has a night paying homage to evil. Many have opted to let their children participate in the innocent and fun act of trick or treating by setting rules that they can’t dress in costumes that glorify mutilation and death. Now they’ve got to look out for the hyper-sexualized costumes too.
Take for example, the difference in “fairy princess” costumes at a usually family-friendly retailer like Target. Many versions like a cross between a ballerina in a tutu and a 70’s era cocktail waitress. It seems as if they are trying to create a parade of children dressed up to sexually attract males. Just who they are supposed to entice is not clear: 14-year-old boys carrying bags of candy? 35-year-old dads who answer the door? The pedophile down the street?
At online costume websites or party stores, the choices are even worse. The “top costumes” for tween girls on one popular costume website showed a slew of vampy options, including the highly offensive “teen girls prisoner costume” as seen on a young model wearing thigh-high boots and 6 inch heels, and showing lots of flesh under her prison-striped mini-dress.
So what are parents to do when their 12 year old decides she’s not too old for Halloween after all, and wants to dress up like all her friends? Or when your 14-year old son plans to tour the neighborhood with a band of skimpily-dressed girls masquerading as sexually available adults?
How To Save Your Family By Protecting Your Children’s Modesty
Our daughters need to understand that what we wear, even as a costume, says volumes about who we are and what we think of ourselves. When our young girls are encouraged to put their bodies on display, in sexually precocious ways—even as a “joke” or a masquerade—they are reduced to objects. Tell your daughters that God created them to be respected as people created in His image; persons whose bodies are as precious to him as their souls. Let them know that you love and respect them too much to allow them to cheapen themselves – even for one night.
Have courage and talk about costume choices with the parents of your children’s friends, so that everyone is on the same page. If you are the parent of a young man, don’t hesitate to talk with the parents of the girls he may be going out with for Halloween. Modesty protects the hearts and minds of both young men and young women.
Finally, provide alternative entertainment. Many local churches host Fall Festivals and events that are teenagers specific, or where they are invited to help host parties for the younger children. And most of them have costume guidelines.
It’s time to slam the door on the marketers of sleaze and give the night back to our children.
My little girl as always bucks the trend, she is going as Santa Claus, a fat old christian bearded man.
Many adult women use office Halloween parties as a chance to show off their figures in skimpy outfits. Adult costume sites are filled with costumes like, “sexy nurse,” “sexy flight attendant,” “sexy pirate,” “sexy nun,” etc. Now it’s filtered down to the kids.
Unfortunately, in my world Halloween is the gay Christmas. I can deal with my nice colleague who wears vampire fangs backstage but listening to the endless plans for dressing up as women and getting the perfect size 15 pumps is just toooooooo much for me.
None of the costumes on that party city link are any more salacious than the average high school cheerleader attire, or for that matter, the average catholic school girl uniform.
I find it interesting that Halloween has a Christian background to it.
Meanwhile, I am still trying to figure out what to dress as for a party on Saturday. Nothing involving zombies. I hate zombies!!
It gives us good girls an excuse to be a slut for a day and get away with it.
Back in the Eisenhower years, when I was growing up, only grade-school kids would go trick-or-treating. Halloween was essentially a children's holiday.
Why is Halloween a white trash holiday?...I know, I know....going door to door asking for free handouts.
That is adorable
Days like hearing this I am SO GLAD I grew up in the eighties as a kid.
In Germany it is called All Souls Day. The next day is All Saints Day
Of course. The more vapid the population, the easier it is to manipulate. In the words of Aldous Huxley: "Ogry-Porgy."
Getting them hooked on drugs also makes them compliant -- "Better a gram than a damn."
Really? You're kidding, right? I have an eleven-year-old daughter who is 5'2" This is an example of the teen and tween costumes that are marketed to her. It is actually called a "Lolita Geisha".
It took us hours to find a costume that didn't look like it belonged at Hugh Hefner's mansion.
I had the misfortune of being in charge of a company function involving wearing Halloween costumes. My biggest challenge wsa tactfully explaining to SEVERAL female employees that the custumes they had selected were inappropriiate. To me, Halloween costumes are supposed to be scary, not provocative.
I think you are totally wrong.
Halloween is for kids. A much greater percentage of houses in poorer neighborhoods have kids, therefore more holiday crap.
Rich neighborhoods, not so much kids.
I hear the Lady Gag costume is popular this year.
Glad I have a boy. I’d rip my hair out if I had a daughter.
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