Greetings dearest fashion police, we kindly ask that you stop policing children on what they should or shouldn’t wear in the comfort of their homes. The dictionary definition of a child according to the Merriam Webster dictionary is “a young person especially between infancy and puberty”.
the adultification of Black girls needs to end immediately. this also begins at home with the coinage of terms such as “fast”, and sexualizing their bodies and clothing. i can’t count how many times i’ve been told to “cover up”. adultification is dehumanization.
— bri nicole (@brinicolebrooks) April 21, 2021
Growing up, did you ever have to suffer the stern looks from your mothers and aunts after you wore shorts or a skirt (THEY BOUGHT YOU)? Do you recall hearing things like “ugqokeni kanti?” (What on earth are you wearing?) or my personal favourite “What will your father say?” You’d hear things like “There are men in the house.”
SO WHAT?!
Stop enabling nonsense. The world does not revolve around men. It is not a child’s job to make men feel comfortable. How do you tell a MINOR their clothes might send the wrong message to their grandfather? What message is that aunty? When did pieces of fabric on a young female’s body become a net that catches prey?
Black women who defend men like R.Kelly by labeling those young girls as being “too fast” or “too grown” as means to justify his predatory behavior are a different type of sick.
— RAE. 🤎 GIRLY (@thegirlyone) March 12, 2021
Why pray tell should a pre-teen care what her father will think of her attire? Children especially girls are trained, conditioned and hardwired to live in fear of their male relatives from the moment they are born. They are taught that they should hide their bodies because they entice men.
the way little black girls are sexualized and slut shamed is ridiculous
they can’t even be children without their weird moms seeing them doing normal ‘girly things’ or going through puberty as being ‘fast’ or ‘too grown’
— ⋆ riri⁷ in da box🃏⋆ (@GEMJIMS) April 15, 2021
Female relatives are usually the reason behind this fear. I hope you do not misunderstand me as I am fully aware of what atrocities are committed with each passing day: fathers violating their newborns and siblings pinning each other down after dark but that is not the point of my message today. There’s not enough cloth in the world to stop a predator.
Whenever people try to justify the correlation between rape & clothing, I really wonder what their justification is for when babies, toddlers and elderly women are raped? Nightgown too tight? Diaper too short? That Xoli hun can fuck off.
— Tahj kior (@ForeverTahj) September 2, 2019
Stop enabling disgusting behaviour in your households. The minute a male relative looks at your daughter/sibling with lust-filled eyes, nip it in the bud. Khaba lenja! (Kick that dog to the curb!) I know this is an impossible feat considering how you women love to look the other way because “abantu bazothini” (what will people say?) What will it take for you to open your eyes? How a child dresses is not the problem. Would you like to have your daughter raped before your eyes in her Catholic school uniform? Will you be convinced then? Don’t even get me started on certain Christian parents’ abo-Deputy Jesus who still act surprised when they hear stories of rape within the family despite dressing their kiddos in floor length clothing 24/7.
I totally agree that you should dress for company but you shouldn't have to change or cover up in regular clothes for a nasty uncle. If you generally walk around in a tshirt and panties, yeah put some pants on when company is coming. But if you're wearing a regular tank top…
— Katrina, RN (@SoKattastic) May 31, 2018
If you ever ask a kid to go and change the clothes they feel comfortable in because a male relative has arrived then maybe they shouldn’t be allowed to visit anymore. I’m sorry that this isn’t written by a man because maybe then you would have taken me seriously.
Brown parents be like “everything we do, we do for our children’s happiness!” Then invite an abusive predator to every family function and tell their kids to stop making stuff up and blaming people when they say they feel uncomfortable lol
— Just Jageero (@JustJageero) August 13, 2022
Instead of teaching your daughters to refrain from wearing clothes that accentuate their features, talk to them about bottom barrel individuals that like to take what is not theirs. Make it easy for them to come and talk to you should anything sinister happen under your roof. Most importantly act swiftly once an injustice has been reported. If all of that fails then maybe you could try put warning signs on all the paedophiles in your family with the label “QAPHELA! INGOZI! DANGER!”
Anybody looking at a little girl eating fruit and labelling it ‘sexually suggestive’ should be the ones in the news https://t.co/j58MXHfdp9
— cal (@Calrichardson_) August 4, 2020
Children especially AFRICAN children are not allowed to express themselves and God forbid they have an opinion, how they dress themselves especially at home is their way of doing just that. Society crucifies us for our fashion choices as it is, don’t bring that negativity into the safe haven that is their home.
Okay so what did we learn today folks?:
- Practice letting your child wear anything they are comfortable and confident in at home.
- Give the kids age-appropriate sex education
- Teach your children both male and female about the dangers of the outside world and how it can sometimes creep into households.
- Pay attention when a child feels uncomfortable around a certain family member.
- And for Pete’s sake lock that pervert out the house (P.S. I don’t care that you’ve been married for 15 years, he belongs in the wilderness with the rest of the predators)
- Report all crimes of child abuse no matter who the family member is.
Notice as we go into more hotter weather: She is not wearing like a prostitute, You’re just thinking like a RAPIST‼️#WomensRightsAreHumanRights #childabuseawareness #ProtectTheKids
— Podolski_Sbotja (@Sbotja_23) August 12, 2022