Is 12 too young to be a runway model?

[Curiosity]

Karrie - good arguments - but runway models are selling sex not talent

I had an early start as a music talent and it got into my head so badly (concern about failure) one day at the ripe old age of fourteen I quit. Everyone was angry with the investment they had made in time and money and hauling me to performances and auditions, etc. Took me a long while to be able to sing or play without that tape rattling around in my head about "be the best".... You have no idea how cruel the CBC can be to a ten year old....

Now I enjoy music as a friend - not something to beat. I love to share now with real people instead of a work session and some guy in earphones telling me to redo and redo and redo.....bah

Young minds are in a constant state of flux and even the most casual innocent encounter can leave its mark on a preteen or teen.... and the toxic influences are so ready to pounce because the young are easily molded into little machines....in order to please.

 

[Unforgiven]

There would be nothing wrong with it in and of itself if it were in context and explaned to the kid in a way she could understand and digest with a view to what she wants to do with her life. But what are the chances of that? Most likely, though there is little here to go on, all the wrong messages are probably being repeated over and over to this kid who will at some point most likely develop some very self distructive ways to deal with pressure and rejection.

You can look at some people like Ron Howard or Jodi Foster who grew up in the profession and used it to go on to a career in the field. But far more prevalant are the disconnected washouts who once were someone and have since taken that rejection to heart.

 

[karrie]

Karrie - good arguments - but runway models are selling sex not talent

Well, they're selling clothes as runway models actually. An actual fashion show isn't necessarily a sexually charged event. She's not a Victoria Secret model. her outfit there is high fasion, but by no means any worse than what girls wear to school in some areas.

She's definitely selling less sex than most cheerleading squads.

 

[Curiosity]

OK little one - let me dissect it from my head

The little girl who is today being dubbed '13' then later 'almost 13' which in my book is still '12'..... is wearing clothing which could be worn by women with women's bodies ranging up to adulthood.

Child stars in acting, or the arts, or sporting events are selling a talent for doing things with their talent - in performance -

The little girl in this discussion is selling clothing = which in my sodding brain - equates with sexual enticement - if it doesn't = what would be the point?

She could wear jeans.

If she has a strong family background which can prevent her from getting into the trenches with some of the oddities who model clothing, starve themselves, use drugs instead of milkshakes and hamburgers, she may escape. I do not wish her ill. The modeling community however are not known for treating their clothing racks as humans - I cannot see a 12 year old girl survive without some psychological damage.

I have just seen too many teens who cave for aggression in the parents.... trying to be what the parent thinks is ok.... and while pushy parents exist in the arts, sporting skills, rapid advancement in schooling, there again is the innate talent - which enhances the child's experience -

Does sex do this? To a twelve year old? And if it is truly a 'calling' what would be the harm in waiting for two years until she is fourteen or older - a much safer and solid age group. If she loves to model clothing - fine - let her do it for mother and daughter local charity events - or simply being well dressed for her friends to admire and copy.

 

[mabudon]

I think anyone under the age of 18 should be represented by computer graphics in AL media pretty much

I HATE when some piece of CRAP movie has a real 6 month old baby in it, it's just putting a signal for morons to get all mushy and thus trick them into thinking the movie was worth watching cos "baby was so adorable"

And mark your calendars, I AGREE WITH CURIOSITY 100% on this

Kids selling sex is WRONG WRONG WRONG, and every time I see a 12 year old with the word "****" or "*****" printed on her ass I want to hunt the parents down and BEAT them until they understand, it's truly sickening

 

[karrie]

Now don't get me wrong Curiosity... I don't agree with the pressure put on ANY of these kids.

But, I really don't see her talent (and yes, walking a runway takes talent, just look at the number who suck at it), as a whole lot different or less sexual than my prime example... cheerleading.

And the pressure isn't all that much different from say, gymnastics, where their appearance IS key in selling their routine, and they are just as prone to eating disorders. Or acting, where they are just as prone to the drugs and eating disorders as models. Take a look at what happened to Scarlet Pomers on the show Reba... suddenly this brilliant little actress who was central to the show, became a puff of red hair seen in the edge of a frame, because her anorexia got so bad they couldn't in good conscience film her.

I don't like any of it... but it seems to me that targeting only one area gives us a very limited view of the issue.

OK little one - let me dissect it from my head

The little girl who is today being dubbed '13' then later 'almost 13' which in my book is still '12'..... is wearing clothing which could be worn by women with women's bodies ranging up to adulthood.

Child stars in acting, or the arts, or sporting events are selling a talent for doing things with their talent - in performance -

The little girl in this discussion is selling clothing = which in my sodding brain - equates with sexual enticement - if it doesn't = what would be the point?

She could wear jeans.

If she has a strong family background which can prevent her from getting into the trenches with some of the oddities who model clothing, starve themselves, use drugs instead of milkshakes and hamburgers, she may escape. I do not wish her ill. The modeling community however are not known for treating their clothing racks as humans - I cannot see a 12 year old girl survive without some psychological damage.

I have just seen too many teens who cave for aggression in the parents.... trying to be what the parent thinks is ok.... and while pushy parents exist in the arts, sporting skills, rapid advancement in schooling, there again is the innate talent - which enhances the child's experience -

Does sex do this? To a twelve year old? And if it is truly a 'calling' what would be the harm in waiting for two years until she is fourteen or older - a much safer and solid age group. If she loves to model clothing - fine - let her do it for mother and daughter local charity events - or simply being well dressed for her friends to admire and copy.

 

[Dreadful Nonsense]

well first off the she looks creepy comment i don't aggree with..i think she looks happy in the pic and professional on the runway pic....
this is what the kid is doing ...this is what the kid wants....i doubt if she is being sexually abused as well.....

ya know what about her 15 minutes?


i have a theory....really rich kids should be brought up with strict rules for the rest of their lives are going to be one of privalage.

poor and middle class kids should be spoiled rotten as for the rest of their lives usually will be one of servatude in some form or other....

that being said....Some kids in her position will turn into paris hilton and others will turn into ron howard.....you can say it's all up to the parents and the guidance and all... it really boils down to the person as well....most importantly the person.....

why not give them credit where it is due....

good on her....have a ball....burn the candle at both ends whilst you can....

 

[lone wolf]

Dunno ... I'm thinking of a little kid in Colorado....

Wolf

 

[Dreadful Nonsense]

Dunno ... I'm thinking of a little kid in Colorado....

Wolf

the ramsey binet kid???

sorry for the sp

Yeah that stuff is creepy..it really is....
did you see the movie lil miss sunshine.....i was in stitches....
it sort of made up for having to view a documentary on those shows and the parents and stuff.....

 

[#juan]

a child model

As London Fashion Week bans models under 16, Zoe Manzi describes being talent-spotted at 13 – and says no daughter of hers will ever model so young

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I was 13. It was the mid-1980s and a tenant of my father’s, who was a make-up artist, asked me to do some test shots with her. Through those I got my first job – a makeover for Jackie magazine. A few shoots followed, but my career really started some time later when I found myself in Duck Lane, Soho, being given the once-over by Ray Petri. Ray was a starmaker – hugely charismatic, he was the force behind the Buffalo aesthetic, a fashion movement that was all about attitude and street smarts – it was immortalised by Neneh Cherry in her single Buffalo Stance and established Nick Kamen, of the Levi’s launderette ad, as the male face of the moment. I didn’t know about any of this; I was just there for the pocket money.
Ray finished peering at me and pronounced: “I love your nose, it’s sooo Buffalo.” The irony of this comment was that my strong, Roman nose mortified me and I was saving up for a nose job. “Great rack,” offered Jamie Morgan, the resident photographer. “Watch it, Jamie,” Ray said: “can’t you see she’s a schoolgirl straight out of a convent?” And I was. From the ages of 5 to 11 I’d been a pupil at a very strict Roman Catholic convent in North London. Among




http://tinyurl.com/yu3ts3

 

[karrie]

interesting article juan, thanks.

 

[Curiosity]

Karrie

Been thinking about this while I munch lunch.... because in true keeping to what I believe - the parents have the last call and choice - or parent (singular) - whoever is responsible for the child - and whatever she really wants to do.

Because I believe in choice. Even though I project disaster from choice often.... but we have to let people make their own decisions regarding their children - there are far too many goofy laws on the books which enrich the legal community only and cost families too much...financially and emotionally.

So.... in real life I would check out the parents thoroughly and grill them on the possibilities of the whole thing going 'south' for their child.... I would check out the daughter and listen to her wishes....
Then I would be available later as a promise to all of them to pick up the residue if it was necessary.

That's all any of us can do for others. What we choose to do in our own lives, I would fight for ... that right which is ours alone as long as it does no harm to others.

 

[Curiosity]

Mabudon - Red letter day for me here....with your words below: lol

And mark your calendars, I AGREE WITH CURIOSITY 100% on this

You never know - we may agree on a whole list of topics which never come up because you prefer to post along the same theme with which I do disagree.

But real life is full of many issues - no doubt you have great passion and love for people - as do I - perhaps we only disagree on how life for society should be guided and led - but with the same goals in mind... peaceful and plentiful coexistence.

 

[lone wolf]

In the end, it really is a parental responsibility. Thing is, are those parents going to accept the responsibility should any evil befall a child they sexualized in the name of fame or a few bucks?

Wolf

 

[Curiosity]

Wolf

A few parents would only see the fantasy and project their own dreams upon their child.

I think another group would postpone the fantasy for a few years even if they liked the idea.

I feel however the majority would insist the child wait until she was able to handle the sexual connotations of the work - and there are many - and the age would vary with each child but
sixteen and above for my own personal taste.

Still: Karrie is a responsible woman who has accomplished much in her life with a serious go get
attitude - and as she describes her daughter - that little person seems adult beyond her years - so
Karrie may be feeling that her own child could make a sensible decision and carry it through with
success.... dunno....guessing...

 

[karrie]

No, I don't think I'd let my child work at that age. I don't like organized sports either for kids, I don't like the pressure we put on our kids to be adults, to compete.

I think they should be learning responsibility, but not at a constant job like that.

I don't think kids should be facing most of the things I put in my first post in the subject. The emotional burden, the damage done to so many little psyches. I just think it's unfair.

Wolf

A few parents would only see the fantasy and project their own dreams upon their child.

I think another group would postpone the fantasy for a few years even if they liked the idea.

I feel however the majority would insist the child wait until she was able to handle the sexual connotations of the work - and there are many - and the age would vary with each child but
sixteen and above for my own personal taste.

Still: Karrie is a responsible woman who has accomplished much in her life with a serious go get
attitude - and as she describes her daughter - that little person seems adult beyond her years - so
Karrie may be feeling that her own child could make a sensible decision and carry it through with
success.... dunno....guessing...

 

[Curiosity]

Karrie

Part of the growth process while still under the love and care of parents is learning how to accept failure as well as success.

Competition thrives among children - it is their way of testing what they are best at, what they dislike, and in so doing learn many things about themselves - humbling and not always pleasant.

I think life's lessons can be handled best when there is a safe home to return to and shed the tears.

If kids don't participate in some personal tests, they lose the opportunity of knowing how to handle
tough things along with the good stuff.

Still personally I think parading on a runway isn't a terribly good life lesson. It is a sophisticated competitive kind of situation that isn't really pleasure oriented... I think far above what a 12 year old could dissect and understand.

 

[karrie]

Bah. It all sucks Curio. No matter what you get your kids into, there's some horrible aspect that's going to threaten to tear them apart. If your kid loves hockey or soccer or football, then you need to deal with the jerky parents of their team mates and the pressure to perform faster and stronger. steroids run rampant. And let's not even get into the number of kids who've been abused by their coaches.

If they want to get into dance, gymnastics, cheerleading, then the pressure to look a specific way, and/or to sexualize their routines, is phenomenal.


So far the only thing I'd even consider putting my kids in as far as sports go, is swimming or track, where their success is more individual, and their failures are their own. Where performing well is dependent on time, not on appearances.

Of course, my own views and anxieties about it will have to take a back seat to what my kids want. There needs to be, by necessity, a balance between what I fear, and what they want.

Karrie

Part of the growth process while still under the love and care of parents is learning how to accept failure as well as success.

Competition thrives among children - it is their way of testing what they are best at, what they dislike, and in so doing learn many things about themselves - humbling and not always pleasant.

I think life's lessons can be handled best when there is a safe home to return to and shed the tears.

If kids don't participate in some personal tests, they lose the opportunity of knowing how to handle
tough things along with the good stuff.

Still personally I think parading on a runway isn't a terribly good life lesson. It is a sophisticated competitive kind of situation that isn't really pleasure oriented... I think far above what a 12 year old could dissect and understand.

 

[Curiosity]

No concerns for your parenting skills Karrie....your kids are lucky.

Ya make em, build em, bake em, and put them on life's plate...god bless parents...

 

[Niflmir]

Three cheers for Karrie and recognizing her children's right to self determination. That is always my biggest fear in things like this, how much does the child really want to be doing X?

There was a report released by Statistics Canada a little while back that showed that the average school kid put in 59 hours a week for school work, which was well above the national average for adult employment.

If this is a legitimate choice on her part, then good for her; I hope it will be a cherished part of her childhood. If it was something inflicted upon her by vicarious parents, then I fear for her, but I can make no sweeping generalizations from my easy-chair. As for the dangers of the modeling world, we don't protect children from the dangers of crossing the street by forbidding it, we put the best safeguards in place that we have and have them cross in an organized fashion.