Minister rages against bras for children

“Bras on sale for girls as young as seven,” headlines the Belfast Telegraph. Airing concerns about “the sexualisation of children”, the Belfast daily leads with news that a number of clothes chains in the Northern Irish capital are “selling padded bras to enhance the figures of girls as young as seven, despite concern from children’s rights groups.” The bras have provoked the ire of Northern Irish minister Arlene Foster, “a mother of three children under 11”, who has called on the Northern Irish assembly “to step in to stop this practice.” To the south, meanwhile, shops in the Irish Republic are selling “bra and knicker sets for three to four year olds”. The Telegraph notes that logos on knickers include "And your problem is . . .?", "I don't ask for much, just my own way!" and "Whatever". Said a spokeswoman for the Belfast Feminist Network – “Selling products like this to pre-teens is about conditioning young girls into the stereotyped roles society forces them into.”