Young Girls’ Groove: Dance or Pornography?
May 18, 2010
by Karen
|The opinions expressed herein are those of the author, and not necessarily those of The New Agenda.
The definition of Gyrate is “to move with a circular or spiral motion, especially around a fixed central point” – especially but not necessarily. I cannot keep track of how many times these 7- and 8-year-olds rotate and swing their buttocks and chests back and forth. Their movements are much too rapid.
According to the 1986 – 1987 court case, United States v. Wiegand, the “lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area” is defined as:
1) whether the focal point of the visual depiction is on the child’s genitalia or pubic area;
2) whether the setting of the visual depiction is sexually suggestive, i.e., in a place or pose generally associated with sexual activity;
3) whether the child is depicted in an unnatural pose, or in inappropriate attire, considering the age of the child;
4) whether the child is fully or partially clothed, or nude;
5) whether the visual depiction suggests sexual coyness or a willingness to engage in sexual activity;
6) whether the visual depiction is intended or designed to elicit a sexual response in the viewer.
The genital area can be covered somewhat, and it does not have to be intentional to be a “lascivious exhibition” as long as its design or choreography in this case is sexual and can excite a sexual response. And really, what is not sexually provocative about the rapid rotating of their pelvic area and their chests in such skimpy outfits?
In the case, United States vs. Knox, Knox contended that the upper area of the inner thigh was not sexual and should not be considered pubic.
To determine the meaning of the statutory language “exhibition of the . . . pubic area,” the district court looked to the plain meaning of the words. Since the pubic area is located directly adjacent to the genitalia, the district court concluded that other areas in close proximity to the genitals, specifically the “uppermost portion of the inner thigh,” were also included in the statutory definition of the pubic area. District Court Memorandum at 14; App. at 41. Since the upper portion of the inner thigh was clearly exposed, the court held that the tapes contained an exhibition of the pubic area, and therefore denied Knox’s motion to dismiss the indictment.
Knox had been arrested for possessing video tapes of pubescent and teenage girls, the youngest being ten, dressed in underwear and other revealing things. These girls danced to music and gyrated their sexual parts with emphasis upon their pubic areas. He was charged with child pornography.
Child pornography can be classified into ten different levels with ten being the worst.
1) Indicative: non-sexualized pictures collected from legitimate sources (e.g., magazines, catalogs).
2) Nudist: naked or semi-naked pictures of children in appropriate settings collected from legitimate sources.
3) Erotica: pictures taken secretly of children in which they reveal varying degrees of nakedness.
4) Posing: posed pictures of children in varying degrees of nakedness.
5) Erotic posing: pictures of children in sexualized poses and in varying degrees of nakedness.
6) Explicit erotic posing: pictures emphasizing the genitals.
7) Explicit sexual activity: record of sexual activity involving children but not involving adults.
8 ) Assault: record of children subjected to sexual abuse involving digital touching with adults.
9) Gross assault: record of children subjected to sexual abuse involving penetrative sex, masturbation, or oral sex with adults.
10) Sadistic/bestiality: record of children subjected to pain, or engaging in sexual activity with an animal.
The video and pictures of young girls appear to fall under level 5. These girls do appear to be having fun, but at their ages, they live for approval and praise. They have no concept of what it is sexual, but the adults who choreographed them and who permitted the choreographers do have such concepts of sexuality. When human sexuality does develop, it draws upon a wealth of experiences and transforms subconscious associations into active associations (sexual orientation). What are these children and the audience learning to associate with sex? What does the audience already associate with sex?
The parents of these girls are not the first to find an audience among pedophiles. Years ago, before Yahoo! and Egroups merged, there were child modeling sites that required its viewers to pay a fee.
For $25 a month, “Lil’ Amber” fans can ogle pictures of the little girl coyly hiking up her miniskirt or posing in a bikini on a faux bearskin rug. For $50, they can purchase a video of Amber “dancing and running around” in outfits that leave little to the imagination.
The money goes to her college fund, the site says.
Another website was JessetheKid, which also had a Yahoo Club, now defunct since the merger. Lil’ Amber and JessetheKid attracted an audience of pedophiles.
Jessi’s mother say they don’t know what their demographic is, a quick peek at the girls’ virtual fan clubs make it quite clear: men with nicknames such as “Cum ta Poppa.”
At one of Amber’s fan clubs, “humberthaze” writes: “We only get glimpses of her potential when she does a bit of ‘bump and g,’ but then she quickly relapses into something awkward and childish. Sometimes you can hear the photog get excited when he gives us what we/he want(s). She’ll do a little killer wiggle and we hear him say quickly, ‘What was that?’ or ‘Do that again!!!’”
Another complained: “She’s gotten too developed for my taste, I doubt I’ll be an Amber fan anymore.”
The [child modeling sites] are also featured on several adult search engines and pedophile links.
The director of a watchdog organization dedicated to eliminating child porn, Julie Posey was not at all surprised by the audience demographic: “”Why else would someone pay to see kids in their underwear?” However, the parents either found nothing wrong or simply cast a blind eye.
Jessi’s mother said she was “amazed” to learn that her daughter’s website was linked on Fresh Petals, a forum dedicated to people attracted to prepubescent girls.
“If they enjoy looking at a kid baking cookies in a video and find that arousing, that’s their own sickness, not ours,” she said.
All mothers and fathers of these children should be stripped of their parents rights until they are given brains and taught how to use them. Disgusting and clearly violative of the children’s right to bodily self integrity. The whole country should be up in arms, but they won’t be. Sad doesn’t even come close…..
These girls are aping what has been made common female movements by MTV and other cable channels force fed to Americans by the Media Cartel. People have no real way to express their disapproval or I am sure they would. We do not have consumer rights relative to TV media. You either pay to have cable in your home and then allow the old men who own media to force feed what ever they see fit into your home or you don’t get cable and you don’t get any channels at all. Every time you pay your basic cable bill you subsidize the garbage programing and concepts that could not exist widely in a free market. Taking cable or satellite is like have a reverse sewage pipe installed, you pay to hook up and instead of taking away sewage they actively pump it into your home. And they export their crapola and misogynist drivel all over the world implying that they merely reflect American culture. Of course the Media cartel also gate-keep so that people with new and original ideas in programing can’t get their product to market.
If you don’t like how pervasive this crap has become here is a web site that lets you see how much you would pay for cable if you could choose only the channels you watch. If we could all do that many offensive images would just disappear because they would have no audience and no way to extort payment from The People.
http://www.howcableshouldbe.com/
And here is a website of people who are fighting for cable choice.
http://www.parentstv.org/PTC/cable/main.asp
Of course both sites are run by Republican leaning folks, there are no Democrats who care about images of women in media.
The parents of these girls are incredibly naive or in complete denial if they do not think that they are putting their children on the radar screen for perverts. Children should be allowed to be children; they are not mini-adults.
Several years ago, there was a woman who had a hard time finding age appropriate clothing for her tween and wrote a book with the title of “Don’t Dress Your Six Year Old Like a Skank Whore.” You almost wonder if pediophiles are doing the clothing desgin for girls’ and young women’s clothing these days when you find T-shirts that read “Open for Business” or A & F’s T-shirt that read (at breast level) “Who Needs Brains When You Have These?”
And I do not think that it is Republican leaning people alone that are troubled by the marginalization of women and their rights and commericialization of women’s bodies that treats us like we are meat on hoof, I think that anyone with the brains of a trained flea is troubled by this disgusting lack of regard for women and girls.
I would be interested in hearing about Democrat leaning groups who have tried to tackle the problem of images of women in media as I am a non affiliated voter these days and I am very interested in solution oriented people and groups. It would be good news to hear the Dems have an awareness of the problem and if they actually have a results oriented plan of action I would be delighted. A bunch of fancy talk or a Blue Ribbon Commission stricks me as just a bunch of BS.
Hey! I wonder what the newest Democrat commission on women and girls is doing about images of women in media and the fact that women have no true voice in media and also no consumer rights to refuse to have Media Cartel sewage pumped into their homes then have payment for this unwanted garbage extorted from them?
Chris Rick gets it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh3jBvLsYiU
I was trying to point out that the way women are mistreated in this country and the media does not have an ideological base, it is a human rights issue. I do not think that either party has done an admirable job in regards to women, but at least the Republicans stick up for their women and do not toss them under the bus. I left the Democratic party because of the way Clinton was treated because I felt that if they would do it to her, they would do it to me. I believe that if a party believes that people with my packaging are not capable of running the country, they should not be dumb enough to count on my vote. Simple as that.
As far as the media goes, we need to keep in mind that most media outlets are owned by a very small subset of corporations and their nerving endings are in their pockets. Corporation have always been great at keeping women and other groups down because it is cost effective. Journalism used to be a calling, like teaching or the ministry or medicine and now it is just a business, and a sordid one at that. If you want to change the garbage in the media, you need to hit them in the pocket book. It is interesting to note that the traditional media outlets that preach and pontificate are in seriously financial do-do, while the nontraditional types that speak to people rather than at them, are doing better. Signficant correlation?
I wouldn’t even allow my 15 year old like that. First of all not only should the parents be stripped of their Parental rights they should be arrested along with the owners of the dance school as proveyers of Kiddie Porn. I am throughly disquested. My adult daughters don’t even dress like these little girls. I wonder how those parents would feel if one of those pediphiles raped their daughter because that is what happens. Those little girls don’t know anything about the music. Put the parents and the owners of the dance school in prison for about five to ten years I bet that will stop other idiot parents from exploiting their daughters.
The problem is Patriarchy. These children’s parents are clearly blinded by it. Patriarchy is the overarching system that defines women as nothing more than sexual objects, and by extension, young girls as pre-sexual objects. It’s the reason the Beyonce video is viewed as “empowering” to women, rather than exploitative trash, so appropriate to reproduce in cartoon form for kids. It’s the reason pole-dancing classes are becoming an acceptable women’s fitness regimen. It’s the reason clothing for women and girls in fashion, sports, and dance are designed to expose as much flesh as possible, not to enhance movement, as the girls’ parents have been brainwashed to believe, but to sexualize them in service to the Patriarchal ideal. Like the analogy of the boiling frog, our society is immersed in Patriarchy, and it’s getting hotter.
*****A
I’m with you Helen – if my daughter were involved in this kind of thing I would instantly pull her out!
I agree with all the comments.
there is no swim suit analogy, because it would be quite unusual for 8 and 9 year olds to gyrate in them. the outfits look like coming from the next porn shop not from a dance studio and for sure not from the usual 8/9 year old gym or ballet outfit store. tootoos or tutus (not sure about spelling ) look very different.
what the mom says is partially correct. that the music is infiltrating all society and we at our wits end how to protect our children/girls. I have chosen to be outspoken and discuss each and every nuance coming up to correct the industry’s influence. besides introducing lots of uncertainties I am not sure how much good it does. our TV is hidden, internet access only under mom’s view and with a heavy dose of classic music and female composers in the air, my girl loves the popular songs.
i congratulate Karen and TNA for their research and for being spot on.
we had to today a little NOW action with 6 women creating quite a media turnout on a sentence reduction for a child rapist. I think this type of slippery slope porn (porn to me) will increase child rape. here’s the link: http://www.nbcwashington.com/n.....80449.html
It is sad that a generation of young people have been deprived of anything that even resembles music. Ever Beyonce video screams sodomize me! I have been to dances for my young nieces and have witnessed young girls doing this kind of dance, but even worse, dancing check to check during the slow music has been replaced by slow dancing butt to penis. I really wanted to cry when I noticed that not a single young couple were facing each other while they slow danced.
Obama has elevated these destroyers of civilized culture and there has been a rescent photo of Beyonce and Jay Z in the situation room of the white house- a place that has historically been off limits to any figure who is not envolved in public policy.
Where is the opportunity for real African American musicians or any real musicains for that matter. Some where out there is another Stevie Wonder, a Jimmy Hendrix or Aretha Franklin. Music, even pop music should be about the music, not sexualization of young girls and the promotion of misogyny. Every rapper who goes to prison for some weapons crime comes out to win a staring role in a TV show or movie. It is like telling young African American males, “get arrested” and you will become a huge success. Liberalism has gone off the deep end in America. Stop this nonsense, and grow up parents. Stop trying to be cool instead of being the adult.
Marielle,
Thank you for exposing your children to classical music. The definition of Art has been poluted for too long. Children need true examples of artistic expression. And having them exposed to artists who know their craft and strive for excellance can only help their developement into self respecting productive adults.
All mothers and fathers of these children should be stripped of their parents rights until they are given brains and taught how to use them. Disgusting and clearly violative of the children’s right to bodily self integrity. The whole country should be up in arms, but they won’t be. Sad doesn’t even come close…..
Thanks for this article, Karen. The comments are so right on, I have nothing to add. Except that I was thinking of signing up my 3 year old for ballet classes in September and I am having second thoughts. I think kiddo would really enjoy dance classes but I don’t know if I want to enroll her only to someday have an argument with the dance instructor over the costumes /song choices.
And it seems like little girls dancing to “Single Ladies” at dance class is not so unusual. One of my favorite Mommy Bloggers has her daughter going to a dance class and was briefly upset to learn that the recital song would be “Single Ladies”. The Chipmunks version. I don’t care if it’s the Chipmunks version, I’d still be upset since the original song has lyrics about the man “owning” the woman. There’s an empowering message of sorts in the original song but the whole ownership thing is not empowering for girls or women. And something I certainly don’t want my daughter to be exposed to!
I think I’m signing up kiddo for Karate instead. I imagine she’ll like that, too.
Well as the media world changes the monopoly held by the Media Cartel is breaking down and there are a few ways that you can fight back against their images of women and girls. The best way is to stop taking cable and tell the company why you cut the cord. At this point you can watch ONLY the shows you want over the internet for free using services Hulu.com. You can rent your movies and entire seasons of TV shows from Netflix.com. I seldom watch live sports but if I do I get together with friends or go to a bar, it is more fun than staring at the game alone. This is much easier than wasting your time prenatally controlling the 90% of cable content that is malecentric garbage. Also social networking sites and common interest sites are more entertaining than most TV these days. Also encourage your friends to cut the cable, they will save a lot of money.
And take heart, MTV is considered to be one of the most successful TV channels around. It isn’t, in reality it is about 45th in popularity far behind HGTV, Food Network, and many wholesome channels. Shows like the Victoria’s Secret “Fashion Show” get horrible ratings, usually 4th place out of the 4 networks and the new porned up Miss USA bombed too. That won’t stop these shows from being broadcast because a bunch of old men run media and gate-keep all others out but it does show what sells. If the Media Cartel did not have the power to force feed their garbage and extort payment for it and also gate-keep new ideas out of the market these deranged views of women and girls could not flood society. We need to cut the cable. We need to encourage our friends and relatives to cut the cable.
Another thing that comes to mind regarding dance, My kids went to Catholic school K-8 and at the school dances the songs were approved by adults, there was a dress code and there were chaperons who insisted that room be left between the slow dancers for “the holy spirit” and no sleazy dancing happened. My kids loved the dances and went to all of them. Then my son went to public high school and he went to the first dance which had no dress code anything goes lyrics and dirty dancing (MTV influence all the way). He walked home and was home 30 mins after the dance started and never went to another school dance. I might add he is a complete extrovert so I can not imagine how a more quiet child would have processed the event. This sort of thing is really sad. After that I sent all my kids to Catholic High School where there was a dress code and breathalyzer (which didn’t need to be used) at all the social events.
Bes,
I like your comment about your child’s Catholic school experience. I know many might not agree with me but I strongly believe that the Christian belief system makes it much more difficult to stomach the sexualization of young girls and the extremely unrefined culture of misogyny.
Steps-a-lot-in-it admits he can’t stop looking at this video? This pedophile’s dream?
creepy, as are these parents.
juliette, if you are still on here, can you contact me through facebook? re classic music. i think you are spot on how any appreciation for a wide variety of music gets drowned out by this popular sexualized music. My head is spinning how to promote living and dead female composers. did you know there are over 500000 works available on hildegard.com. too bad it is all sheet music and I am still screening for CDs.
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