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Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
Girl's Life Magazine: Because It's Never Too Early To Hate Your Body

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SBJ
05/17/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
It provides me great relief to know that my own 5th grade petite would take one look at this tripe and use it to wipe her ass if she happened to run out of t/p.

This is so totally irresponsible.
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DorothyZbornak
05/17/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
And they wonder why teen girls hate themselves and develop eating disorders and other problems. You know, I expect this kind of crap from Cosmo, but for a girls' magazine to do this is disgusting and extremely irresponsible.
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GoldenRatioφ (aka -girl11)
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
Sigh. Today when I was at S-bux studying I heard two high-schoolers talking about no matter what size meal they ate, they always made sure only to eat half, because then they "didn't hate" themselves, it just made them feel better to see uneaten food. One girl was explaining how she always skipped dinner by napping through it, so her family wouldn't make her eat. They were pretty much talking about it as though it were normal behavior, like it's just expected. And they were such skinny girls, but talking about how they *had* to lose weight for summer, because it's just what you do.

It made me want to scream and shake someone that hating your body is becoming such a big thing so much younger. I know some high schoolers have always suffered from ED's, but I don't remember such self-hate and disordered eating being treated so commonplace when I was in high school (the same one they go to) 6 years ago. I hope that it's as isolated as it was when I went to high school, but seeing these GL coves makes me think these girls read this crap in middle school, then get it pushed even harder on them in high school when they start reading 17 and Cosmo. So infuriating.
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TurtleWexlerKickedMe
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
Thanks, hortense. Nicely said.
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undomesticgoddess doesn't sleep a wink
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
I sent a letter. Both Hortense and I were encouraged to start reading things before "firing off" letters and writing articles.

Also, Karen Bokram misspelled "encouraged".
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lucystrawberry: Tier 2 is the new black
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
Uh, we need to infiltrate these forums and give these girls GOOD ADVICE.
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yes, i do know how to use my mouth
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
You guys do know that most 12 year olds don't read GL, right? They read seventeen, or cosmo girl. I'm a 13 year old, and most kids in middle school don't read GL. We read it in elementary school MAYBE. Which makes what GL says even worse. Because they're targeting like, 5th graders!!!!!!!!!!! 10, 9 year olds!!!!!! Ah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The horrors of being 13...........
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GoldenRatioφ (aka -girl11)
05/16/09

@lestylegirl: That was a thought that crossed my mind when I wrote a letter to the editor..."you know it's younger kids reading this crap!" But they probably have this stuff in Cosmo Girl and Seventeen, and GL wants to attract you 13 year olds, so they think that this body-hating stuff might keep their younger readers longer.

Btw, I don't know if you've started high school yet, but it gets a LOT better! High school's a blast, college is even better...and after that...meh.
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Sputnik_Sweetheart
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
How about the quiz to find out if you are too demanding? Yes, because you should be quiet and submissive! If you are assertive and speak up for yourself, no boy will ever like you! Girls should be seen and not heard!

headdesk

headdesk

headdesk

headdesk

headdesk
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Yes_Tim_Gunn
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
This. Angers. Me. We, as a society, right now, have to take responsibility for how we are damaging our kids and Stop. Doing. It.

This has strengthened my resolve to find a mentoring opportunity with young girls and help them to create a narrative to help counter this bullshit. Let us collectively brainstorm, Jezzies. What else can we do to empower our little sisters?
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BellaTricks
05/16/09

@Yes_Tim_Gunn: I just finished work at a non-profit designed to empower and support middle school girls, and to educate them on the bullshit that growing up female can entail. I truly loved it, and it was an incredibly eye-opening experience for me.
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Yes_Tim_Gunn
05/16/09

@BellaTricks: That sounds awesome. I think I'm gonna volunteer at a writing mentorship program where I am, in Austin. Could you PM me with the name of the non-profit?
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misspell
05/16/09

@Yes_Tim_Gunn: Have you seen Smart Girls at the Party? It's not something to do, per se, but it's so awesome, and it's reassuring in that you get to see young girls being real people. Plus it's hilarious. Amy Poehler started it.

[www.onnetworks.com]
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BellaTricks
05/16/09

@Yes_Tim_Gunn: I'm in Austin, too! That's where the nonprofit is. PM-ing you now.
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Triana Orpheus
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
"I Gained Weight And Lost Jobs: A Supermodel Speaks Out."

Wow, really? I don't even think Cosmo would go this low.
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BellaTricks
05/16/09

@Triana Orpheus: I'd take that bet.
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lunacydress
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
I've never even heard of this magazine. Everyone here posting about "When I read Cosmo Girl when I was growing up..." leads me to believe I'm older than some of you, but all of this makes me even more grateful I has Sassy!
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girl.of.your.dreams
05/16/09

@lunacydress: Me too. I definitely remember some of the crap in Seventeen, but Sassy was my favorite - and it focused on things like social justice and female rockers, not bikini bods. It's sad there hasn't been something similar to fill the void.
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misspell
05/16/09

@lunacydress: Sassy all the way. I didn't even know about CosmoGirl until a couple of years ago. Thankfully, the bookstore I worked at for the last 8 years didn't carry it.
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GoldenRatioφ (aka -girl11)
05/16/09

@lunacydress: I just googled it because I thought I remembered reading Girl's Life. It came out in 1994 when I was 10, but I don't remember it having any of this fuckery. The little I remember of it was that I loved this cover with a girl playing soccer, and I don't think they used to put so many celebs doing Cosmo-lite poses on the cover. I only read this magazine for a couple years before I convinced my parents to let me switch to Teen, then Seventeen, so maybe this is why they have a toned-down version of cover lies on the front; they had to compete with those three teen magazines to get girls to keep reading it.
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badmutha
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
The number 1 thing guys wish you knew? That they all want in your pants and want you to say yes! DUH.
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Natali Wind
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
I'm shocked about other being shocked. Yes, this bothers me too but this is nothing new. You can't act like you didn't know what was being told to little girls because you were once a little girl! I started reading Cosmo at six by sneaking a peek at my mom's copies when she wasn't around! I've known about this ridiculousness for years, haven't you? And like me, you probably read 'em anyway, right?
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baraqiel
05/16/09

@Natali Wind: No, not at all. My mom bought me female-positive sex ed books about how sex feels good and periods are healthy but suck sometimes and guys can be cool but sometimes aren't. And I read whatever magazines were in my house, primarily Newsweek.

But I may be an exception.
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BellaTricks
05/16/09

@Natali Wind: Known about this for years? Yes. Read them anyways? Absolutely not. I don't buy into products that perpetuate the societal disease that is the thin obsession.
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undomesticgoddess doesn't sleep a wink
05/16/09

@Natali Wind: Cosmo isn't AIMED at girls 10-15. It's meant for grown women, and a six-year-old wasn't its target.
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Everything MidnightBikeRide does is a balloon.
05/16/09

@baraqiel: I'm with you. I never saw anything like this at that age. Incidentally, I also had my own subscription to Newsweek.
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baraqiel
05/16/09

@Everything MidnightBikeRide does is a balloon.: Newsweek is great for kids. Skip the long, complicated Fareed Zakaria op-eds and concentrate on Conventional Wisdom and Perspectives. It's a great tutorial in how the world of politics works, and you can read the articles you're interested in as you become prepared to.
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graciousplum
05/16/09

@Natali Wind: I agree, this is upsetting but not shocking. I've been fed since forever that Barbie and models and blonde hair and manicures = "pretty". I can't remember not knowing that!

@baraqiel: You're family seems awesome! My mom isn't a prude, but she was never in touch with me. I got a couple embarrassing books from her that I never opened. Instead, she mostly left that info to the Catholics' "Family Life" program ala BULLSHIT.
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baraqiel
05/16/09

@graciousplum: *shrugs* I mean, my mom's totally uninterested in the kind of stuff Cosmo shills. She stopped shaving her legs like 15 years ago because it was too much work, has short hair that she doesn't dye, almost never wears make-up, etc. My parents emphasized academics over everything else, and equally towards my brother and myself. So I never really learned the "beauty is a woman's duty" stuff. The consequence is that I suck at putting on eyeliner, but that's a pretty small price to pay, I think.
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undomesticgoddess doesn't sleep a wink
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
I'm pissed over this. That is all.
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baraqiel
05/16/09

In reply to Girl's Life Magazine: Repeat Body Image Offenders
"Does your BFF have your back? Even if she clearly does, we're going to plant the suspicion in your mind that she doesn't! Because teenage angst is fun!"

Nice job, magazine editors. Also, do we really have to start in with the "naughty or nice" virgin/whore complex with TEN YEAR-OLDS?!
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