I was shopping for clothes for my daughter last week, and I was flabbergasted at some of the fashions aimed at little girls - and by that I mean 6 - 12 year olds.

One of the mannaquins was wearing a skirt so short it barely covered it's butt and a T-shirt that 'tease' on the front of it. In the shoe department there were 3 different styles of knee high boots for little girls, two of which had heels on them. 

That wasn't the worst of it though. I saw something else that I thought was totally inappropriate.

Lingerie.  Yes, lingerie. Lace and satin spaghetti strapped baby-doll nighties with miniscule bikini panties to match.  For the older girls there were demi-cut padded bras with matching thongs.

Why are we sexualizing our children at such an early age?  We complain that we have rampant pedophilia, that there are sex offenders everywhere and that our kids aren't safe, then we turn around and send them out dressed like little hoochie mommas fresh off the street corner.  I hear women talking to their daughters about how 'hot' they are in whatever outfit it is that they're wearing, and I'm just flabbergasted, #1 that ANY mother would tell their pre-pubescent child that they're 'hot', and #2 that they're actually encouraging their children to wear clothes like this!

I know that we can't blame the way children dress for the pedophilia epedemic that this country is experiencing.  That would be like saying that a woman who wore a mini skirt was 'asking' to be raped.  But don't we have an obligation to protect our children from things that aren't age appropriate?  Don't we have an obligation to let them be kids, to be little girls?  To play dress up their Barbies and ride bikes, to have tea parties and play hide and go seek instead of seeing who can wear the shortest skirt, the highest boots and the most make-up at the earliest age?

We need to stop leading our kids down the sexualization path, America.  We need to let them be kids, not encourage them to lose their innocence at even earlier ages.