Mom Says Daisy Dukes Aren't for Toddlers, Target Listens
Ever since Daisy Duke popularized super short denim cutoffs in the “Dukes of Hazard,” the barely-there jeans have been a staple for women in warm weather. But the butt-grazing shorts aren’t necessarily made for everyone — especially young girls — yet over the years the revealing style has infiltrated the kids section and angered many moms.
One parent in particular, Stephanie Giese, aired her frustrations with the short hemlines sold for her daughter in a blog post titled, “A Target Intervention on Behalf of My Daughters.” Published in late September, she points out the sizing discrepancies between Target’s apparel for children and the store’s competitors. “You are making our daughters’ clothes wrong,” she writes. “I’m sure you already know this, but your size 5T shorts are actually smaller than many size 2T shorts made by other brands.” She demonstrated the incongruity by holding up a pair of girl’s jean shorts from Cherokee in a size 5T next to a pair of Fisher Price shorts in a size 2T — the latter pair was noticeably longer.
The “Binkies and Briefcases” article noted that the sexualization of women starts at a very young age, with booty shorts being sold to children not even young enough to consciously know what a booty is. Describing a small pink t-shirt, Giese asks “why an XS shirt (size 4-5) needs to curve like that to show the shape of a young girl’s body, a body that hasn’t even developed the curves that a woman’s shirt in that same cut would be trying to feature.”
After the mom of three’s criticism went viral, receiving thousands of shares and many parents voicing similar concerns, Target Corporate Headquarters reached out to Giese to ask for help. The company has asked her to provide specific feedback about the clothes and have Giese act as a voice for what moms and girls want to see in stores, ”The good news is that Target is listening to us,” she wrote in a follow up. “They recognize that there is a problem. And they have promised to start working with me to fix it!”
