Increasing Number of Young Boys Participating in Beauty Pageants

ABC News writes about a significant increase in the number of American boys who are competing in toddler beauty pageants and taking up cheerleading and ballet:

An estimated 10 percent of contestants are now boys, up from 5 percent five years ago.

Some boys take the stage mere days after being born. "Kevin did really well," one mother said of her 2-week-old son on "Toddlers and Tiaras." "He was awake and wasn't crying."

In some cases, pageant moms admit their sons are filling a void. "When I see little girls, I always think, I could turn my little boys into girls," another mom said. "These are my girls I never had!"

But Miller insists Zander is living out his own dream. "The people who say this is not for little boys need to wake up. We are in 2010. Heading into 2011. I honestly never thought I'd be doing pageants with my son. But he loves it. Everyone loves him."

Video at the link.

Link via J-Walk Blog | Photo (unrelated) via Flickr user Jennifer Donley used under Creative Commons license