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Pimp My Child
Riposte – By Sumner Burstyn.
A child being pushed along a crowded downtown pavement on a hot Saturday afternoon in Toronto. Nothing strange about that. Until you realise there’s an excited crowd around the stroller and coterie of videographers surrounding mother and child. Next you notice the stroller. It’s totally tricked out. Lined in layers of lace and pink velvets, trimmed and hung with sparkly tassels.
And then you realise there’s a real live baby in there, as pimped as her pram. She’s propped up on pillows so her stroller is more like a carnival float than a convenient way to transport a child. And it’s clear right away this is no ordinary baby. She is layered in pink frills, there are ribbons pinned in her sparse baby hair and her tiny ears sparkle with jewels. To finish the ensemble she’s secured against the pillows with a big bling belt.
When you first catch site of this circus you think ‘oh that’s a cute kid.’ Then you notice the woman we assume is her mother. She says she’s former French model, which would explain how she can easily push a stroller in 9-inch heels in a stripper tight dress that begs the question: how did she get that body back so quick after giving birth? And then you wonder is this child is really hers?
And then the real questions begin. Who is this child all decked out in some approximation of fame? And why are total strangers stopping and gawping and cooing over her as if she’s just jumped out of the pages of a princess storybook?
On their website the parents declare Hyrah was ‘born famous’. They say they decided ‘a celebrity childhood best fit their daughter’s natural charm.’ They claim she is the cutest and most photogenic baby in the world. Naturally with so much going for Hyrah they did what all good parents do – they hired a video crew to follow them 24/7. And they began to tour their prize exhibit around the casinos, streets and malls of the US and Canada.
In one very disturbing video on the site Hyrah is dressed in a tiny spangled costume not unlike something a showgirl might wear. Rather than being cuddled she is held at arms length by an unidentified man as he dances with her almost as if she were an adult woman, while around them cameras flash and people clap.
A paper just published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry by Martina M. Cartwright tries to understand the similar phenomena of child beauty pageants. Cartwright calls it “princess by proxy,” a unique form of “achievement by proxy distortion” in which adults are driven primarily by the social or financial gains earned by their child’s accomplishments, regardless of risk involved for the child.
Certainly as we watch from a distance and following their little circus for a few blocks in Toronto it is obvious this is not some innocent bit of fun orchestrated for the benefit of a child.
From the clichés of her costumes to the princess model of how girl children should act and look, the public life of Hyrah with her single name moniker is deeply disturbing.
It is a new kind of street theatre played out both online and for real where the life of a child is a commodity no different than any other manufactured item.
She exists solely to satisfy the celebrity greed of her pimping parents.
It is our need too. Everyone they meet on the streets and online just seems to buy into it. It’s as if we are all so inside the fake dream of a diamond studded life that we can’t see the tragedy of this one life. And all we can do is coo how cute she looks.
In the end Hyrah is just an ordinary baby. Except she’s been sold into a form of slavery – to image, to pastiche, to pink girl clichés, to bling and the cult of shallow celebrity by the very people who should be her care givers. Poor Hyrah. What happens when she wakes up one day and realizes the world her handlers created around her was as fake as the Truman Show. Surely this is child abuse.
That poor child.
What sad, sick parents.
What on earth are they trying to grow her into?
Another Paris Hilton?
I suppose we can hope against hope that some kind of self-worth/intelligence/character will emerge in spite of this nonsense.
This illustrates the empty, sucking void that is our celebrity culture.
How sickening. And what a bang on take by Sumner Burstyn.
Good article. How sad for this girl, to have to grow up in that environment. I agree with Emily’s comments – lets hope she has the constitution to grow up into a person of character. This is celebrity culture at it’s worst.
Somehow get this article to them. They need to know its misguided love.Those of us who are parents are concerned enough to say “Stop it now” and if necessary seek professional medical help.
Delusional messed up people using their kid to become famous. Sickening and not surprising given the fact that they live in north america where this type of lifestyle is applauded and celebrated.
You are making her more famous by writing this article about her. The best thing to do about defeating base celebrity culture is to ignore and turn our back on it.
I am of need of some direction as my comments are being deleted off this site.
Possible reasons:
Issues with my computer.
Issues with livenews.co.nz system,
Livenews.co.nz doesn’t like them,
Sumner Burstyn doesn’t like them,
I am not staying on topic,
I am being to personal in regards to Sumner Burstyn,
Comments need to be pro blog,
Maybe if there was a general guide line for when people would like to comment that could help with this issue. Maybe it is that livenews.co.nz doesn’t want balance with comments, maybe it Sumner Burstyn that doesn’t want balance with comments. Maybe it’s a case of if you stop one from making comments then maybe the one would stop looking at your site. Maybe livenews.co.nz only want like minded people to see what is on this site. Maybe the following would be better for all:
“What an interesting article you have written, your so right. She sounds like a real cow of a mother”.
Well that’s not what I think I stand by my first comment – The above article is not a solid piece. At best it is a personal blog which asks no real question and gives no real answers. I also stand by my comment that as much as Sumner Burstyn may look at this woman and think it is child abuse some will say that her raising children with her extreme left wing values may also be seem as child abuse.
Sarah, as per my email to you on 25/10/12 8:16 AM
“It is Selwyn Manning here, editor of LiveNews.co.nz.
“I’m emailing to let you know I have taken your most recent comment down
off the site. The reason is it is way off message. The culture of
comments I am trying to cultivate are responses to the issues. Your
recent comment goes after the person, the writer, which is your
prerogative however it adds nothing to the debate.
“Obviously you are free to express your views as you wish, but with
LiveNews I request you do so by chasing the ball not the player.
“Regards,
“Selwyn.”
Hi Selwyn, cheers for that. I just had a look at my e-mails and yes there is was. Thanks for confirming reason. You are so right I have been playing the man not the ball. I do enjoy a good old debate and i thought if I could just push a little might get her engaged. Before Aug this year I had no idea who she was but now well now a few more do know who she is. The thing now for is yes I don’t like what she did but I’m have become some what interested in her to what mades her tick, where has this anger come from, why does she think that way, you know all that background stuff that makes up a person views etc. I do not think for one minute that her and I would agree on very much at all but isn’t a good debate great. I will also say that as a 43 year old I only learnt how to read and write at 21 so I know I’m not the best writer so when I see statements about her what she has done in the past and papers she has written for I do want more from her. I would love to have the skills to know, spell and use all the words she must know. So Selwyn I will give you my word that I will do my best to play the ball should I comment again. Hey here’s an idea you could me to do a monthly blog may not have all the flash words but it would be interesting. Just joking. Well thanks again for you reply it was really well worded.
“born famous”? Egad!
Didn’t they learn anything from the JonBenet Ramsey tragedy?
Also makes me think of the girl, Brazilian I believe, who recently auctioned off her virginity for 3/4 of a $million. If you ‘re objectified and commodified from the get-go, how will you ever learn to plumb your depths.
Sigh ~ Deeper and deeper into ever more shallow waters ~~~
Thanks for pushing our gaze beyond the surface glitz, Sumner!