Many of you have heard about the dance video of several female elementary dancers performing a routine to Beyonce’s dance hit “ Single Ladies”. To the general dancing public it was seen as a cute and great dancing performance, but to others it has become a disturbing reflection of the influence of sex and children.

The traditional leotard, ballet skirt, and opaque tights gave way to tube tops and spandex boy shorts. The outfits in correlation with the dance routine might leave you to wondering, how old are these girls?

Here are some responses from Twitter and Facebook about the issue:

• “…they are just children, we should leave them alone.” -Facebook
• “I would never let my 7 year old daughter dance in that outfit, let alone allow her to watch the performance…” -Facebook
• “These children will forever be broken from the media attention they are getting….we should blast and condemn the teachers and parents.” -Facebook
• “Who cares about what these kids are doing, sex is sex, is there a difference being exposed  at 6 than at 11” -Facebook
• “I’m all for advanced dance routines but this is not age appropriate.” -Twitter
• “Would there be an outcry if it were boys dancing to MJ grabbing their crotches?”  -Twitter
• “I blame the parents…are they even sensible adults?” – Twitter
• “This video is a nesting ground for predators, did the parents think about that… -Twitter

I don’t fault the children at all. Kids will only do what they are allowed to do; therefore I fully fault the parents. Beyond the parents, the blame points toward the social culture that sells and promotes sex to kids at such a young age. Obviously sex isn’t sold blatantly, but it comes across ingeniously in cartoons, movies and video games.  Sadly, we have become desensitized to the sexual innuendos, references and images that have become societal norms.  Our desensitization to sex  has contributed to several generational problems such as teen pregnancy, single parent families, depression, self-esteem and behavioral problems.

In conclusion, we are allowing our kids to grow up way too fast. They are becoming men and women long before they have the chance to enjoy the innocence of childhood. It is up to us to encourage our kids to be kids and teach them how to be responsible and reject the negative societal advances. It starts with you!

Be sure to leave your comments and ideas.