I was in Meijer (grocery store) yesterday and I saw what, at first, appeared to be just a middle aged man with his pre-teen daughter. But it was odd. The girl couldn't have been older than 12 but her attire screamed of 18+. She had on a coat, short skirt, and boots that had very long spiked heels. Had to have been 5 inches at least. Otherwise she seemed normal, simply preoccupied with her cell phone, probably text messaging.
The man looked nearly 40, had on jeans and a dirty coat and 5 o'clock shadow. I thought it strange, to say the least, but after I left the store I couldn't help thinking that this girl might be being exploited somehow. I feel like I should have done or said something.
This sounds just like my brother-in-law and niece when my niece was "12 going on 20." The two apparently being there together of their own free will, non-interference was the prudent policy.
Posts: 7617 | Location: in the backwoods of North Carolina | Registered: 06-07-02
If the girl was dressed very inappropriately it may well have been her choice. There's a lot of pressure on girls today to look 'hot'. Unfortunately this can cause older males to view the girl in an unsuitable way. Of course it is the adult, in this case the male, who is obliged to use restraint.
We're living in an increasingly sexualized society. Mothers dress and paint little girls of five or six as if they were hookers, teach them to dance seductively, and put them on display in competitions.
The man may have been an embarrassed father, having spent half an hour before leaving home trying to convince the girl to dress more decently.
Or he might have been an exploiter. But you can't intervene on such insufficient data.
Posts: 6249 | Location: British Columbia, Canada | Registered: 06-11-02