We arrived in Menorca for our holiday. Early start having to leave home at 0300 hours but the advantageof this is that we had a whole day here.
What I had forgotten was that topless sunbathing is the norm here (in fact accidentally stumbled across nude sunbathing as well but that's a seperate story). Now, topless sunbathing doesn't shock me. I think people should generally be allowed to show what they want of their bodies, we all have them after all (admitedly some are less nice to see than others though). However, what has shocked me, and makes me very uncomfortable, is that the little girls of seven or eight years old are often topless as well. I'm trying to work out if this shock makes me a prude. Is it just that we get steeped in a media culture where child abuse is a constant recurring story? Is it the child protection issues hat have been drummed into me over the years managing security at festivals have made me over-sensitive? Adults showing their respective bits (or irrespective depending on how you look at it/them) seems one thing, children quite another.
3 comments:
But then at 7 or 8, it's not really topless is it? There's no need for a top because there's nothing to actually cover up. It's quite a long time now since I was actually 7... But I remember going to the beach and going swimming in just my pants because we didn't have swimming costumes with us. I suppose there is a big difference between that and encouraging young children to think about being 'topless' but I think the concern is more a reflection of the over-sexualisation of young children.
Am thinking that both my children and I have a son and a daughter who are nearly 12 and 13 both became very self conscious at about 10/11 and no way would they be seen topless...and not because of anything we had said particularly, it just happened.
Perhaps it is when seen alongside the Mums going topless that is seems worse? more as if they are being encouraged to follow suit?
To me it seems more comfortable seeing "topless" girls alongside their topless Mums. It has an innocence about it which reflects how normal it is in places like Menorca to go topless on the beach. Long may it continue!
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