Boycott Abercrombie and Fitch (1)

By One Angry Mama (Wendy Mihm) | March 30th, 2011

I know this is not technically a finance topic, but I am going to make it into one because I am just so mad about this.

SAVE YOUR MONEY.  BOYCOTT ABERCROMBE AND FITCH.  There. Now it is a finance topic.

Abercrombie and Fitch used to be just another over-priced retailer that was really good at playing on the insecurities of tweens, teens and 20-somethings who were willing to pay a premium to feel like part of the in crowd.  But now they have vaulted over the line of serious bad judgment into outright promotion of sexual predation.

They are marketing padded, push-up bikinis to little girls as young as 8 years old.  Let me say this again:

They are marketing padded, push-up bikinis to little girls as young as 8 YEARS OLD.

Here’s a video so you can have a look at the actual bikini tops:

Now before anyone without a brain in his head waves this off and says “Relax, it’s just a swimsuit,” let’s examine what’s really going on here.  This marketing campaign is opening the door to all of the following:

• The idea that the little girl (who was probably sleeping in a crib just 5 or 6 years ago) is a sexual creature.

• The notion that the little girl’s body is not acceptable the way it is—it needs to be augmented.

• The possibility that a sexual predator or otherwise creepy man or older male will take notice of her.

• The concept that childhood is something to be rushed through so she can get to adulthood, which must be much better.

• The idea the little girl should be sexy by now.

All of these ideas make me physically ill.  All of these things are wrong—you know it and I know it.  For better or for worse, Abercrombie and Fitch is a leading retailer, which means that if this concept succeeds, other retailers will copy it, and our daughters will continue to be sexualized at a younger and younger age. They will continued to be robbed of their childhoods.

Don’t take this lightly, fellow Mamas!  You are in charge.  Step up!

Save your money—boycott Abercrombie and Fitch, at least until they stop selling these horrible, awful, dangerous padded bikini tops to our precious little girls.

For more on this topic, here’s a link to an excellent article in The Washington Times (it’s where I found the video).  You’ll see that I’m not the only Mama out there who is really angry about this.

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