Clothing retailer Best & Less responds to complaints

Health professionals speak out about the increasing sexualisation of children in this article from the Sydney Morning Herald. Includes mention of Collective Shout campaigns and comments from co-founder Melinda Tankard Reist.

Collective Shout co-founder Melinda Tankard Reist was recently a guest on ABC Local radio discussing the sexualisation of childhood.

Melinda Tankard Reist in the Sunday Herald Sun Aug 19 2012

Also published at www.melindatankardreist.com

Last Friday, Ana Amini, a Port Macquarie mother and primary school teacher, posted a few lines on Target’s Facebook page lamenting the lack of age-appropriate, non-sexualised clothing for her daughter,8. She said they had lost her as a customer.

Six days later  the comment had attracted more than  72,000 ‘likes,’ and drawn thousands of responses from others concerned about scaled-down versions of adult fashion for girls.

Collett Smart, child adolescent psychologist and educator reports on the child beauty pageant recently held in Sydney. Collett was invited by Today Tonight to give an outsider's opinion on the event.

Calls for new Inquiry into the sexualisation of children in advertising

As published on the AMA website.

The AMA is calling for a new Inquiry into the premature sexualisation of children in marketing and advertising.

AMA President, Dr Steve Hambleton, said today that self-regulation by the advertising industry is clearly not working.

An important article appeared in the Sunday Mail about the sexualisation of children. The article details the concerns of child experts and advocates who are seeing an increase in incidents of sexual aggression and assault in children as young as 6 and 7 years old. The 2008 Senate Enquiry is mentioned and the point is made "little if, anything has been done and now things have taken a far more sinister twist."