Battle of the tiara toddlers
Politicians and parents speak out against the f irst Scots beauty pageant... for babies
THEY wear sophisticated sparkly dresses and pout like professionals.
Yet these girls are not teenagers going to their prom dance, but tots preparing to take part in Scotland’s first beauty pageant for babies.
Later this year, babies and toddlers aged from just six months to three years will compete on the catwalk in the hope of taking home the Miss Mini Scotland crown.
Unlike traditional ‘bonnie baby’ competitions, the little girls – some who cannot yet walk or talk – will be judged in a number of rounds, including ‘Beauty Wear’, and are encouraged to ‘pout and wink’.
The pageant, due to take place in East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, in September, has already attracted criticism from parents and politicians, concerned that it promotes the sexualisation of minors.
Last night, in a rare move, the Scottish Government condemned the event for judging children on how they look.
So-called Toddlers In Tiaras shows are big business in the United States, where six-year-old Alana Thompson starred in the reality TV show Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and Michigan mother Lauren Jackson once admitted her daughter Savanna had been given spray tans since the age of two.
But other countries have outlawed such shows, with France recently voting to ban all child beauty pageants.
Miss Mini Scotland comes three years after the launch of its sister event, Miss Little Scotland, aimed at four to 11-year-olds. Founder and former beauty queen Angel Dairo claims she is looking for girls who are ‘inwardly and outwardly beautiful’ and only allows entrants to wear ‘natural’ make-up.
But the website for the modelling competition states that ‘swaying when walking, pouts, winks, clinched cheeks, raised eyebrows, sparkly eyes, pointing at judges, excessive head tilts, removable clothing and prissy walks’ are allowed.
The winners get the chance to represent the UK in the Miss United World Pageant overseas and also
receive a threeday trip to Europe, plus a ‘sparkling crown’, ‘customised sash’, ‘professional photo shoot’, ‘bath and body gift bag’ and ‘floral presentation’.
Entrants must each pay a fee of £105 which is non-refundable. Anne Marie O’Leary, editor in chief of the Netmums website, urged families to steer clear of the event. She said: ‘Asking tiny toddlers to pose, pout and wink is deeply inappropriate.
‘Not only are there sexual connotations, it is also teaching girls that they will be judged in life on their looks, not their actions or achievements.’
Scottish Conservative young people spokesman Liz Smith said: ‘If we are trying not to sexualise children, and avoid putting pressure on young girls to obsess about their appearance, these events will have a very negative impact on that work.’
A spokesman for the Scottish Government said: ‘Events in which children are judged on how they look – or are possibly even sexualised at an early age – run completely counter to the Scottish Government’s stated desire that Scotland be the best place in the world to grow up.’
Pouts, winks, sparkly eyes, prissy walks and pointingg at the judges s The Miss Mini Scotland website run by ex-beauty queen Angel Dairo, left