The appropriateness of a little girl’s dress became the center of a heated debate as a result of a mom’s viral video. The controversial clip sparked a conversation on whether some designs are too revealing for young children.
Meghan Mayer, a teacher from Detroit, Michigan, USA, asked her 1.3 million TikTok followers if she was overreacting after finding a collection of summer dresses in the girl’s section of Target that feature cutouts at the hips.
The dresses were part of the Girls’ Smocked Bodice Cut Out Chiffon Dress by art class™ and were adorned in several floral patterns with a puffy long sleeve. Some were pink, some blue.
“I am a little bit more conservative when it comes to my kid’s clothes so maybe I’m overreacting but let me know what you think of these dresses,” Meghan, who had taken her oldest daughter shopping at Target, said in a video, which has now gone viral, racking up 1.7 million views since it was posted on Sunday (February 25).
Meghan Mayer sparked a heated debate after asking her TikTok followers if the girls’ dresses sold at Target were too revealing
In the video, Meghan explained, as she was filming the racks of “inappropriate” dresses: “So, this is the kid’s section. This is a [size] 6-7, for reference. These are kids’ sizes … Look at these little slits on the sides of these dresses, right at the hips on all of these dresses.”
The bewildered mother continued: “I saw this, and I was like, ‘Oh, this would be so cute for Easter,’ right? And then, I see this little slit on the side. So, on a [size] 6-7 or 10 or 12-year-old … we’re going to expose this much skin on either side?”
Meghan went on to admit, once again, that she was a “little bit more conservative”, and that she didn’t even let her daughters wear bikinis, but she wanted to know if she was perhaps overreacting.
“I don’t know,” she added. “I don’t think this is appropriate at all for this age group.”
Meghan’s comment section became a platform for various opinions on the dress, as a TikTok user wrote: “That dress is SO CUTE until you see the slit. Why did they have to ruin it like that?!?”
“I am a little bit more conservative when it comes to my kid’s clothes so maybe I’m overreacting,” Meghan said
Another person commented: “Holes not needed. I agree with you!”
Meanwhile, other commentators were fine with the fashion style, as someone penned: “When I was a kid in the ’70s, I wore halter tops and tube tops they were not seen as big deals.
“I don’t think this is scandalous.”
A separate individual chimed in: “I don’t think they are too revealing, but I do think the holes are ugly!”
An additional person sarcastically noted: “Omg a torsoooooo.”
The sarcastic comment was echoed by someone else: “Overreaction for sure. It’s super cute! Now if it was super short or low cut I would 100% get where you’re coming from.”
Nudity remains a generally taboo topic associated with porn or as something weaponized to sell products, opinion writer Angela Lezaic wrote for an article published in The Daily Utah Chronicle in 2022.
The dresses featured cutouts at the hips
“With this understanding, Americans are desperate to shield their children from it,” Andrea explained. “But nudity isn’t the issue here. We should be protecting them from the harmful idea that their bodies are inherently sexual.”
The writer described going to a pool in Serbia at age seven, and being the only little girl wearing a bikini top, as everyone else wore only their bottoms.
“I felt embarrassed to go shirtless at first because the U.S. had already indoctrinated me to view my chest as shameful (again, I was seven),” she recalled, as she recognized for the first time the sexualization of her prepubescent body.
You can watch Meghan’s video below:
@thecrazycreativeteacherThoughts?♬ original sound – Meghan Mayer
According to Angela, the Americans’ attitude to nudity is in part a result of Christian values that have fueled the US’ colonial history.
“Thanks to groups like the Puritans, who viewed human nature as inherently plagued by corruption and sin, we maintain a punitive perspective in life, particularly towards our bodies and our children’s bodies,” Angela wrote. “In the US, this suppression turns into a perversion we project onto literal babies.”
A cross-cultural study published by the Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences highlighted a more favorable attitude towards nudity in European countries than in the US.
Meghan’s video continued to fuel different opinions
