Stylin' Straps on Kids' Bras?! Seriously?!

As I was checking out a customer today I happened across something I hadn't seen before and never really expected to: A bonus item with a training bra, multi-colored straps designed to match colors with whatever shirt the girl is wearing. You have a red shirt on and you can attach the strap of the same color.

They're called Stylin' Straps, and something struck me about them as being seriously wrong.

What possible reason could a child using a training bra need "Stylin' Straps" for anyway? The only people I can reasonably figure who would even be looking at that part of a 12- to 14-year-old girl would be her parents, or a pedophile. Boys her age aren't going to be interested in her Stylin' Straps. If my own childhood is any kind of measure of what a boy's mindset is during that time of life, if they like a girl they'll most likely still be pulling her pigtails to show it, not checking out what kind of bra strap action she has going on.

At least, I hope kids are still allowed to be that young for that long.

And if a young girl is still in a training bra, maybe - just maybe - it would be inappropriate for her to wear shirts with straps thin enough that they would neccessitate a matching-color strap for her bra.

I see this kind of thing more and more often in retail, though. Young girls being bought inappropriate clothing by their parents. It's bad enough that almost every pair of shorts for girls in the Juniors or younger departments are Daisy-Duke cuts (even down to toddler age), but I see mothers buying their daughters (some of whom can't be more than 13 or 14) thong underwear, strapless halter tops, and bikinis in cuts that could make a European blush.

Why do so many styles and brands seem intent on sexualizing America's children? Most companies put up a defense of, "We just make available popular styles." Well, if America's moms (I almost never see dads around when these skimpy styles are being purchased) would quit buying this crap for their daughters, maybe Candie's, Mudd and other purveyors of clothing would move on to a less sensual cut.

Because seriously, while Mom might think it's cute and all, Stylin' Straps and skimpy cuts in clothing for young girls are just an invitation for the John Wayne Gacys of the world.