7 Year Old Girls Dance to "Single Ladies" Video Sparks Controversy

C.A. Jacobs, Yahoo! Contributor Network
May 14, 2010 "Share your voice on Yahoo! websites. Start Here."

A recent video of 7 year old girls dancing to Beyonce's "Single Ladies" has caused quite the uproar. From parents outraged by the sexualizing of children to others seeing no problem with it at all. When I heard about the "Single Ladies" video, it raised a concern I had back over 15 years ago. Both my daughters danced since the age of three, one currently is still dancing in a professional setting. We have been to more than our fair share of dance competitions.

We had attended a local dance competition and a group of 8 and 9 year olds were performing a routine to a Madonna song much like the "Single Ladies" song. Fortunately, these girls were not as scantily clad as the 7 year old girls in the "Single Ladies" video, but what concerned me was the choreography and the props. Placed on stage were several wooden cutouts of silhouettes of men. The young ladies shimmied up to the men and danced with them rather suggestively. To make matters worse, the dance teacher that choreographed the number was sitting a few rows behind me. While cheering loudly for her girls, I overheard her say that many might find the routine offensive but it wins every time. I was pretty disgusted with her comment. Fortunately, this competition had enough integrity to also find the dance routine inappropriate for their age range and the dance routine did not place.

I do not get this type of thinking, a win at all costs kind of attitude. It's important that children remain children as long as possible and it's up to the parents to know the difference. When we were in the midst of changing dance studios, I went to see the possible choices in person. One of my questions was about costuming and what the girls were required to wear if they competed. One dance studio presented a costume to me that was two very skimpy pieces. Needless to say, we went elsewhere and found a wonderfully appropriate studio for our daughters to learn the various forms of dance.

The dance routine to Beyoncé's 2008 hit "Single Ladies" showed the 7 year old girls in black and red short shorts, a small cropped top and black knee highs. The video on YouTube has garnered over 2 million hits, which is quite disturbing in itself, and gone viral. The performance took place at the World of Dance Competition in Pomona, California. Don't get me wrong, the girls are extremely talented but should not be wearing the costumes they wore or performing that particular type of choreography.

Many might not agree with me but these 7 year old girls dancing to "Single Ladies" are growing up sooner than they should. Dance classes and even dance competitions can be healthy environments for little girls if dance teachers take a stand and choreograph age appropriate dance routines. As parents, it's our duty to hold the studios to these types of standards.

Sources:
www.washingtonpost.com

Published by C.A. Jacobs

C.A. Jacobs is a freelance writer who enjoys writing, traveling, reading and shopping in her spare time. View profile