TheLastManInAmerica

Some might have a genuine excuse like an overabundance of body hair, but what about the rest? Perhaps they get the idea from all the up-skirt shots of their favorite celebrities on the cover of US Weekly. Or maybe they have pushy mothers who live vicariously through them and wish their daughters to be too perfect. Whatever the case, reports say that there is an increase of girls, aged 12 and younger, getting their bodies waxed. Does this seem not quite right to anyone else? While some might be going in for simple eyebrow jobs, some girls as young as eight are receiving bikini waxes. I’m no moral compass by any stretch but what are we telling little girls by letting them, and sometimes making them, get such procedures done?

            One salon owner inBeverly Hills says that nearly %20 of her clientele is of the “tween” age of 8 to 12. Another in New York actually advertises for children claiming that “virgin” hair can waxed and a permanent stoppage of growth can be achieved after 6 sessions. Now if the child needs it, for instance, they have an excess of body hair that is causing them to be ridiculed by classmates and feel socially isolated, although it may not be teaching them the best lesson, it seems reasonable to assuage the child’s distress and let them get it done. But if the child is requesting it for purely superficial purposes themselves or, worse yet, the mother requests or insists they have it done for this reason, it seems deplorable that a salon should oblige and really speaks volumes about where we are as a society.

            I believe it’s healthy for mothers and daughters to bond in such a way but at an appropriate age where the daughter understands what’s going on and can make the decision with a sound mind. Another salon owner described a mother who brought in her six year-old daughter and insisted she have her back waxed. Incidents like this where mothers are forcing it upon their children are unhealthy for the kids. In some degree, it’s the same when the hair has become a social hurdle for the child. Allowing them to alter their bodies is to tell them that they are wrong and that it’s okay to give in to society’s standards and, at such a young age that can have serious long-term effects. These issues need to be discussed, parent to child, with the kid being made aware everybody is unique and everyone has things about them that they don’t like; changing them doesn’t make you a better person. Growing up is hard for kids but a parent shouldn’t take the easy way out and they definitely shouldn’t make it harder on the child by indoctrinating them with the idea that their bodies aren’t right. For mothers like that, I think they should take all the money they’d spend on waxing their daughters and get some therapy for themselves.         

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