A Letter to Victoria’s Secret From a Father

/ Rev. Evan Dolive

An open letter to Victoria’s Secret regarding their choice to make an underwear line aimed at young teenagers. (Read about it here)

Dear Victoria’s Secret,

I am a father of a three year old girl. She loves princesses, Dora the Explorer, Doc McStuffins and drawing pictures for people. Her favorite foods are peanut butter and jelly, cheese and pistachios.

Even though she is only three, as a parent I have had those thoughts of my daughter growing up and not being the little girl she is now. It is true what they say about kids, they grow up fast. No matter how hard I try I know that she will not be the little ball of energy she is now; one day she will be a rebellious teenager that will more than likely think her dad is a total goof ball and would want to distance herself from my embarrassing presence.

I know that this is far down the line and I try to spend as much time as I can with her making memories of this special time.

But as I read an article today posted on The Black Sphere, it really got me thinking that maybe the culture that we currently find ourselves in is not helping the cause.

Recently I read an article that Victoria’s Secret is launching a line of underwear and bras aimed at middle school aged children. The line will be called “Bright Young Things” and will feature ” lace black cheeksters with the word “Wild” emblazoned on them, green and white polka-dot hipsters screen printed with “Feeling Lucky?” and a lace trim thong with the words, “Call me” on the front.”

As a dad, this makes me sick.

I believe that this sends the wrong message to not only my daughter but to all young girls.
I don’t want my daughter to ever think that her self-worth and acceptance by others is based on the choice of her undergarments. I don’t want my daughter to ever think that to be popular or even attractive she has to have emblazon words on her bottom.

I want my daughter (and every girl) to be faced with tough decisions in her formative years of adolescence. Decisions like should I be a doctor or a lawyer? Should I take calculus as a junior or a senior? Do I want to go to Texas A&M or University of Texas or some Ivy League School? Should I raise awareness for slave trafficking or lack of water in developing nations? There are many, many more questions that all young women should be asking themselves… not will a boy (or girl) like me if I wear a “call me” thong?

I want my daughter to know that she is perfect the way she is; I want my daughter to know that no matter what underwear she is wearing it does not define her.

I believe that this new line “Bright Young Things” thwarts the efforts of empowering young women in this country. “Bright Young Things” gives off the message that women are sex objects. This new line promotes it at a dangerously young age.

I implore you to reconsider your decision to start this line.

By doing so you will put young girl’s self-esteem, self-worth and pride above profits.

Sincerely,

Rev. Evan Dolive
Houston, TX

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2,835 thoughts on “A Letter to Victoria’s Secret From a Father”

  1. It took years for them to look at this. Now they do because a dad says so? In the 80,s they did an article on Britney Spears about music, girls and the slut look. It addressed this thoroughly. Sad no one payed attention till little girls are being raised to wear body stockings like painted skin, so they can show off their sex.

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  3. I am a 22 year old woman who can clearly remember middle school and the girls in it. I completely agree with what this man is saying. Put it off. That is already such an awkward stage. You don’t want to put more pressure on the girls or their self esteem so young. Plus those are teaching morals that girls should be suggestive. Why do we have to be. I love Victoria’s Secret and buy almost all of my undergarmets from them, but I would be seriously put off if I saw something so suggestive aimed at young girls.

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  4. I’ve always found the sexualization of children’s clothing appalling. I know men my age (mid 20’s) that think women our age wearing VS Pink and other of their merchandise with said written comments, hilarious and unattractive.

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  6. While I believe it is true that we over specialize our children, don’t you think bringing awareness to slave trafficking is going to do a number on her innocence as well? And what boy is going to see her underwear in middle school? Clothes cause problems sure, but if the fact that other girls have certain undies causes her any more consternation because Vicky’s sells panties for her demographic you should check out the limited too and your parenting skills

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    • He was discussing her self-worth, not her innocence. They are two entirely different things. It’s not what the boy see’s it what standard the girls feel they must live up to. It’s the very thing that creates a rape culture and misogyny. I really don’t believe you see the danger in our society and how it maligns womens self worth in all aspects.

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    • at 12 and 13 , there is no reason to have ANY words for ANYONE to be reading
      on underwears!especially not” call me”! hello

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    • His point is not to protect her from all the harsh realities of the world, but to not promote her as a sexual object and at such a young age. Allowing her to know about slave trafficking and supporting her in efforts to CHANGE it will empower her. Even if a boy doesnt see the message, the girl knows it is there- the message to her is just the same, that she is now desirable to boys. As a parent he thinks this isnt a good message to young girls and I certainly support him in that. Sad and telling that you criticize him.

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    • Just a Thought.
      You have totally missed the point.
      Just because other boys ” may” not see her undies (mind you, young children are very curious) this does not mean that she will not be seeing her underwear when she puts them on. As this happens she will constantly see these words stamped on this piece of clothing and where it is placed on her body. Children are highly sensitive to these things and details such as these stick.

      O man…

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    • What girls in middle school isnt showing boys her underwear…..teen pregnancy in middle school is rediculous and dont be blinded by the fact that u think they r too young….I work in a middle school and the presence or absence of parents is irrelevant because all kids care about is acceptance from whomever will give it be negative or positive. So making adult underwear for a 10 year old is sick and its parents like this guy who make me proud to be a parent.

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      • I’m a teacher,too, at a k-6 school, & I agree. Parents often don’t give their kids the sense of self worth that will give them the strength to resist pop culture. It CAN be done. I have numerous students that have strong parent involvement & will flat out say that certain things are inappropriate & won’t follow the crowd. On the other hand there are the kids who are all into pop culture & aggressive sexuality. In fact there’s a mouthy 12 yr old 6th grader who’s on birth control.There’s far too much sexuality aimed at kids by ADULTS only interested in profits & who know that many parents,like the mom who was ok about getting undies for her 9 yr old at Victoria’s Secret, are lax & permissive & will get anything the kids ask for. They’ll buy that trash instead of promoting books, dance lessons, sports, the importance of education & following their dreams.Too many stupid parents are into the whole “I want my kid to be popular” thing & don’t set rules,supervise kids, & set boundaries. That’s why you have disasters like that Ohio rape trial. Where were the PARENTS of those partying,boozing underage kids?? There’s a school in my city where they have a kind of day care center for the BABIES OF THE GIRLS THAT GO THERE who are as young as 10 & 12. It’s disgusting & any adult who doesn’t believe sex goes on in middle school is totally clueless. Adults don’t do their jobs & teach proper sexual behavior.

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    • You obviously haven’t been to a middle school lately. Children are becoming more and more sexually aggressive, and it is starting younger and younger. The statistics for sexually active middle schoolers is skyrocketing. Don’t be so naive to think a boy or girl won’t be able to find opportunities to show whatever they can to each other. And trying to pin loss of innocence on the author’s parenting skills shows you completely missed the point on this blog. Sad oversight.

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    • Middle school boys see Middle school girls panties at an alarming rate– mostly because of products such as these, sold at many popular stores, suggest to young girls that it’s natural. There’s a difference between being sheltered and raising young ladies who respect themselves. Raising awareness on slave trafficking sends adolescents the message that objectifying females is wrong; selling clothing and undergarments that objectify females sends the message that it’s normal. Huge difference.

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    • See..but that’s the thing. When all the other little girls are busy wearing these different underwear, and parading around in the locker room, where will that leave the others? At a middle school age, children are barely starting to find themselves, and grow into puberty. Why try and hurry them up, rush their growth along, by implying that this sexy line of pre-adolescent lingerie will make them feel better? True, she will not stay young forever, and eventually she will lose her innocence, and grow up. But, come on now. She doesn’t need to be made to believe that her self worth is based upon sex appeal, and how well she can do it. All this father is trying to do is make his daughter realize there is more out there, and alot more available to her than just how sexy you can be for a boy. Trust me… there’s more to life than showing off for a young man. Please, let these young ladies grow up with empowerment, and self-esteem. The right way. Oh, and btw? I’m only 19 years old.

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    • ahem. bringing awareness to slave trafficking doesn’t ruin innocence. in fact, introducing children to any number of inequities in the world does nothing to ruin their innocence (or do a number on it for that matter), that is if you consider innocence to also include a certain amount of integrity, self-worth and empathy. I’m not saying throwing it in her face is the way to go about it – but scaffolding critical thinking around inequity can be done and it can be done well – in fact, research study after research study has shown this.

      and also, maybe some boy will see her underwear in middle school – humans make mistakes, even middle schoolers and maybe it won’t even be a mistake. the point is, words have power even when they are plastered all over underwear and I don’t care what age a child is, she should never learn that she’s an object.

      you can blame someone’s parenting skills all you want but something tells me that you don’t have your phd in psychology or child development (don’t worry, I do) and let me be very clear about something: if she is raised to think critically about the world around her, to protect herself and act with integrity – chances are she will end up just fine with or without her underwear.

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    • Has it occurred to you that Victoria Secrets may be supporting slave trafficking? Just by the mere availability of these selected undergarments with encouraging explicatives might create such a trade involving Victoria Secrets, or as you suggest other vendors of undergarments.

      I fail to see anyone “over” specializing their own child- it is imperative in this society that we do not encourage the sale of adolescent undergarments with suggestive comments. It is enough to simply purchase a nice respectable pair of undies for our children minus any suggestive comments that detract from the proper emotional growth, development, and maturation of our next generation. Think – please!

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    • Hey Just a Thought, are you that naïve to think that some boy isn’t seeing our daughters underwear in middle school? And if she has this kind of fancy underwear someone will be seeing it no doubt.

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  8. I think, perosnally, that Victori’as Secret pushes the envelope on what should be good taste and good manners. Women should respect that they are women first and sex objects somewhere down the list – – way down the list. And men should be educated that women are NOT sex objects. Isn’t that partially what women fought for in the Euqal Rights Fight? Now Victoria’s Secret revels in making ads even which would be considered porn in the 50’s. Why can’t we teach respect for ourselves instead of demeaning our little girls – and what do those things mean to young boys?
    “Call Me” on the front of a thong? – – – – – Sorry, but it is the highest form of sexual exploitation and I implore Victoria’s Secret to keep it at least in the adult world.

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    • Although I agree with your comment, the whole “men should be educated that women are not sex objects” thing bugs me as a man. First off, I hate over-generalizations. I am one of many men that do not think this way, and I know that I and many others don’t need to be taught that women aren’t sex objects. And how does one teach men that women aren’t sex objects? Unless you can manage to convince media that sex doesn’t sell, then this is always going to be an issue. What you should’ve said is that we need to teach our future generations how to deal with the pressures that our culture is putting on us. I am 20 years old, and due to having amazing parents and a fantastic upbringing I know that I turned out to be a respectable person who appreciates females. The amount of stress, pain, and pressure that women and girls are put through nowadays is insane.

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  11. Victoria’s Secret isn’t making a Bright Young Things underwear line for young girls. The rumor was debunked on the Victoria’s Secret Facebook fan page.

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    • Lauren they had it on the website as a special add on to the PINK line marketing Spring Break. All the things he said are true except the CFO has said they haven’t decided to make it a permanent line. He even stated in the January 2013 launch of Bright Young Things that the company was targeting 15 year olds because all young girls want to appear to be older. And went on to say 15 year olds want to be like college kids.

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    • Snopes posted on this a few hours ago: http://www.snopes.com/politics/sexuality/victoriassecret.asp “Bright Young Things” is a line targeted at tweens and young teens, but does not include the examples cited here.

      That said, I’m not comfortable with Vickie marketing to kids AT ALL, even if it won’t be panties that say “Call me.” The whole point of the franchise is to sexualize and objectify women. Even if the Bright Young Things line sold normal girl panties with pink butterflies on them, I’d never take my daughter into one of those stores.

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      • Never mind. Now they’re saying they never had a teen line at all. Sounds like they created a plausibly deniable marketing plan targeted at teens, then back off when people got upset. I really don’t like them.

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  12. As a mother of a four-year-old with similar interests to the little girl mentioned in this article, I agree with the Dad’s concerns. As a mother who wishes to raise her daughter to be chaste and lady-like, I too have a problem with VS targeting middle-school aged girls to sell underwear that invites promiscuity. However, I will not wait for VS to act prudently — after all they are a business whose business model focuses on promoting sexually explicit underwear and not morals. With that being said, I choose to make my wallet my voice. If other parents are concerned, they should act likewise. After all if VS is loosing revenue from this decision, then they will discontinue this product line.

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  13. Thank you so much Rev. Dolive for speaking out and speaking on behalf of all parents who value their children, and won’t allow the sickening sexualization of them for profit. You would appreciate watching the movie that my church and I watched just this week. The link is at the bottom.

    Even when my daughter and I passed by padded and push-up bras in the junior’s section when she was only 11, I stopped and told her “Don’t ever think that you need to draw attention to your breasts. Like the rest of you, it’s just another part of your body, but one day boys will notice and you will have to work really hard, even though you shouldn’t have to, to get them to realize you’re a person with a brain.” Up until she was 15 I repeated it but added “When you’re much older and ready, someone will see you naked…this is just false advertising.” Now, my mature, self-assured 17 year old who is very socially aware and involved in social justice causes is disgusted with Victoria’s Secret’s decision to attempt to potentially launch little girls into adult consequences.

    Victoria’s Secret, who do you think you are? Are you all 15 year old boys under the impression that other 15 year old boys will be psyched with your decision? Clearly you have no idea past imagined profit, what your social and psychological reprecussions will be.

    The board and marketing departments should take an afternoon to watch this. Hopefully you’ll get it.:

    http://www.missrepresentation.org/the-film/

    “The film challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which make it difficult for women to achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to feel powerful herself.

    In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly receive is that a woman’s value and power lie in her youth, beauty, and sexuality, and not in her capacity as a leader.”

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  14. Well said , it is wisdom talking through a young father, we have 3 years old grandaugther and I can’t accept that just for money big companies steal their innocence
    And force them to “grow” faster . It is sick

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  15. I totally agree with this dad. This isn’t the cause of young girls have self image/esteem issues but it sure doesn’t help. Companies are out to make a profit and getting young girls into skimpy clothing way too early. Why should a little girl be proud to sport a bikini? Cover up and save your body for your husband! I am turning 40 very soon and have found it shocking how many Christians even wear very tight, low cut tops, short skits, tight skirts, words that aren’t good on their bottoms and across their chest, all in the name of being cute or popular. Guys are visual creatures and these things DO NOT help them. I am not going to say these things are why women get raped and all but dressing to reveal the shape of ones body and what is underneath with low cut tops and all; doesn’t help..Young girls, teens, and women all over need to realize how they dress can draw unwanted attention and also turn the wrong person on. Parents need to do a better job about teaching their daughters to treasure how God made them beautifully and to dress modestly yet still be stylish. It is possible. We don’t need VS ads as tall as buildings in Times Square with a women in just a push up bra and underwear or a young teen sporting the words across her chest that this man referred to. This isn’t about keeping a child in a huge outfit for the rest of her lift but to build her up on the inside how God intended it to be and allow her body to be something she doesn’t just show off or draw attention to.

    I have a 5 year old son that I pray we will teach him how to respect women and value them as people, not objects because of what they are wearing or have written on their clothing.

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  16. This is so wrong. This isn’t merely objectifying girls at an ever-earlier age; its sexualizing children. There are already enough pedos and sickos out there without Victoria’s Secret stirring the pot by selling an F—ing thong to a 10 year old girl. Just as it is illegal to take or possess provocative photos and videos of children or attempt to sexually entice them, it should also be illegal to put them in a skimpy thing that says “call me” on the front. I honestly can’t believe the idea got the go-ahead from their corporate office.

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  17. Thank You! I can’t even take my kids through the food court at our local mall because VS is right there, and their advertising is too risque. Unfortunately many people may be misinterpreting your letter to mean that you hate everything VS puts out. I saw one person lecturing you that many women can wear thongs responsibly, and she’s right. They need to realize that the issue is not that VS exists, but that they are going to market an overly sexulized product line to extreme minors. Makes one wonder how this is even legal? Call it what it is, lingerie not underwear. And most people I know will not say, “Sure my 12-year old (7th grade age) can wear lingerie!”

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  18. Amen Brother. You CANNOT be a contributor to society by actively promoting promiscuity! Thank you for bringing this to the public eye outside of the walls of Victoria’s Secret. Recently I was in Wal-Mart and noticed the underware for teen girls and thought “who would want their 12 to 17 year old daughter wearing this?”

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  19. Actually the claim is somewhat true. Bright Young Things is part of the PINK line and is being marketed specifically for Spring Break. The target market being 15 year olds who want to appear to be college age. The CFO announced the launch in January 2013 by saying that all young girls want to appear older but has not said for sure if it will be a continued project or just an “add-on” line. And the claim is also accurate about the suggestive words printed across the buttocks and front of the panties. Kudos to you Dad for placing value on your daughter and recognizing her virtue and grace. Even when she is 20 years old, she will still know her value because of you.

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  20. I am a parent and I also believe that we should not raise our children in a bubble. I believe that times have changed and that children do need to be made aware of the realities of adulthood. At the same time, children are not adults and can not make adult decisions. I applaud this father for what its worth and I agree with the statement about the petition. Some children do not have parents who have their best interest at heart. Some teenagers go shopping with their girlfriends and not their parents. It takes a village to raise a child and like this man stated he is not only concerned for his daughter but for other “daughters” her age. Target sells boy shorts for little girls and hot pink bras and such. What happened to the neutral, white and black ones. Children should not be exposed to this sort of thing this early on because they are not old enough to make those wise decisions. I agree that they need to be taught, but it also shouldnt be advertised and made a big deal of. Some women wont look at a Fredericks of Hollywood magazine because of its attire so what makes VS any different to launch a children or young adult line. VS has been advertised for adults, modeled by adult and is known by the world to be an underwear,lingerie, sexy woman type store. Young adult attire shouldnt be sold in there. Because then they would need to advertise it and that in itself just shouldnt be.

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  21. Very well put. My daughter is almost 2. I know that by the time she graduates high school, she’ll probably have at least one close friend that’s had or having a baby. I know that probably a most of her friends will be sexually active by the time they graduate. I know that as a parent it is my responsibility to train her up in God’s word. But, the pressures of the world can destroy anything and everything her father and I teach at home. Satan is far more powerful than we are, thankfully, he’s not as powerful as our God. I don’t need anything else to contend with when it comes to showing my daughter that while God created sex and it’s a wonderful, beautiful thing within the bonds of marriage, she is not a sex object. As you said, her beauty and self-worth are not based on the clothes she wears, the hairstyle she has, the friends she makes, the boys that call her, and most certainly not based on an industry’s standards that only a handful of women can achieve by deprivation, starvation, and lack of self-worth. She is beautiful because she was created in the image of a God that created beauty. She is beautiful because of His work in her life.
    Like you, I want my daughter to face hard decisions, but I don’t want one of them to be, “Should I eat lunch and puke it up or just not eat to lose weight?” “Should I sleep with this boy so he’ll stay with me or watch him go out with my best friend?” “Should I keep my child or give them up for adoption?” I’m going to have a hard enough time raising my daughter to have a health self-esteem and self-worth and respect with the way things are already, I don’t need anything else.

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  23. I’m not a conservative Christian, in fact most of the choices in my life are results from my sinful ways of the past and I wouldn’t change a thing… I love my fiancee who I’ve lived in sin with for over 5 years. She has a daughter out of wedlock who I consider my own. However, as a non conservative parent, I agree with the letter written above.

    This crosses not only values of Christian Family Values but all Family Values. Victoria’s Secret is not the only company who is enabling our youth to wear items that I would’ve only seen on the bedroom floor of my apartment from the woman who I met at the bars the night before (hate to be gross but honesty is what we are talking about here). You are allowing our youth to believe that to get ahead or to feel good about yourself, you should market yourself. What reason would a 12 year old girl need the words “Call Me” on a pair of underwear? To me when my finacee wears a piece of underwear to bed that doesn’t cover her butt cheeks, it’s not time go to bed.

    Our children need to be protected from these things, for someone to tell me that my child lives in a bubble because I don’t allow her to wear certain underwear or watch certain shows, or give her an iPhone at 8 years old, is ridiculous. The reason I do those things is because she shouldn’t have to learn about why people hurt others, or why her friends are texting her nasty names, or for that matter why people enjoy in sexual activities. These are our kids and they should not be raised in a time when sex and violence are shoved in their faces. Companies have crossed too many lines and the little censorship that was out there is now gone. Now I use my DVR as a censor, but I cannot help but be scared of when asks her mom for the same underwear she saw her best friend sporting when she bent over to pick up her books on her way to her 6th grade math class…

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  25. My daughter is 11 years old. She stands 5’8″ tall and weighs 120lbs. She’s an ideal candidate for VS I’m sure, but you can bet my daughter will not be wearing underwear with “Call Me” on it. If she wants decorative, we can find plenty of things with polka dots or frogs or even Sponge Bob. She is already bombarded with images of provocatively dressed girls on TV, movies, billboards, etc. She is blessed with a “model” figure and that’s great but I will encourage her to feel good about herself no matter what she looks like. I will also encourage her to have respect for herself and others by not flaunting her sexuality. It’s hard to find clothes that fit now that aren’t too tight, too short or just plain vulgar.

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  26. I remember the ugly (and limited) selection of underthings available to me as a developing preteen (30 years ago.) I can’t say for certain that prettier underwear would have made changing for gym any less horrifying. As a woman, throughout my adult life, nice underthings do make you feel pretty and confident. I don’t feel the need to show them off, you know? There could be a compromise made here. Pretty, fun, colorful fabric could be used. But for crying out loud keep the styles more modest. A girl doesn’t need her bum cheeks showing. Nor does she need a tacky slogan written down there. Teach pretty… not sexy.. or saucy.

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  27. My concern with this underwear is not what it might do to my daughter. My daughter will be fine. My daughter will wear the underwear, skirt, pants, shirt, that her father and I purchase for her. My concern is for the little girl that doesn’t have a sensible, level headed parent that will not teach her that she is more than a pretty pair of panties. My concern is for the future. A future that looks very bleak, when the love of the almight dollar replaces the love, concern, and responsibility being a good influence of our future generations. What good can come from an unmarried girl/woman wearing suggestive underwear, underwear with a “come get me” message?

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  28. I sit here and read everyone’s comments and I agree and disagree with them. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and views. But I sit here and have two thoughts, one how can vs say they intend on selling or advertising to girls who are in high school or college when we all know that kids who are younger have access to these things just by walking into the store. Like what does it tell a pre-teen that this store that your older sister shops in sells these underwear that says wild on them or whatever. They see it then they think its ok and well then at some point they will wear it. My second thought is that maybe yes we have an issue here but why go after a company that is just trying to make money with the way our country is. What I mean by this is that yes I feel it’s wrong and many other people feel the same way and agree with the letter this father wrote, but look at where our country is now. We have the internet that we can see anything on. I know 5 year olds that know how to find things on there, this is what we teach them in school now a days, how to find things on the internet. All it takes on a computer is to click and say yes I am older than 18 to see an adult website. Or the fact that we have music that tells kids and young minds that it’s ok to call a girl bad names and treat them in bad ways. I do not know if I am the only one here but some of the things we let our children do in privet dance classes is shocking as well. They are 5 or 6 years old and some of the things being taught are unbelievable. So I sit here and wonder do we fault vs for trying to survive in a world that is the way it is, when if they stopped making these type of clothes another store would pop up in their place, or do we teach our children like some commenters have suggested that they are meaningful people and they are much more than what they wear. We should mold our children to be leaders role models because no matter where the times goes where our culture ends up our future are in the minds of the young. What do we really want for our children and for us as we get older?

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  29. Big businesses only care about profit. It does’t matter who buys their product as long as they get their money. They will target whom ever they view as a potential market even if it is a vunerable teenage girl, they have no shame and they are brilliant thinkers. It is up to us in whether we support such large businesses that answer to no one, we certainly don’t have a voice against businesses like VS. If we don’t like being pushed around by big business we should really consider where we are spending our dollars. As this rev is pointing out people are becoming what they buy.

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  30. I remember a few years back here in the UK, Marks & Spencer had to withdraw a line of similar product aimed at young teenage girls after complaints started coming in from concerned parents.

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  31. Children or pre-teens do not need to be sexualized. It’s borderline pedophilia, in my opinion. I’m not a parent yet, but I have very young siblings and am coming to an age that having kids isn’t too far away. I do not want my children thinking that as soon as they’re 12 or 13 that they should be acting like adults. I don’t want to have a daughter asking for this sort of thing just because it’s cool, without understanding the implications of it. And how does VS intend on advertising this?! I’d hate to see a billboard of a young girl who’s barely in high school wearing a pair of underwear saying “Call Me”. That makes me sick to my stomach. If I have a daughter, I want her to be just good ol’ fashioned cute for as long a possible, being content wearing an over-sized t-shirt with a happy face on it and purple pants with her hair in pig-tails. I do not want her a few years later wearing something meant to be provocative. I know enough women who are in their late 20’s and early 30’s with confidence and self-esteem issues because they’ve been objectified. We don’t need corporations fast-forwarding that to make a quick buck. I think most of us can remember how upset people were when Britney Spears came out with a sexual image – which is pretty tame by todays standards – so at what point do people draw a line in the sand and say, “Enough is enough”.

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  32. I applaud this father for his letter. In this day an age it if over due.
    I thought I would share the below from the Victoria Secret official facebook page…..

    >”In response to questions we recently received, Victoria’s Secret PINK is a brand for college-aged women. Despite recent rumors, we have no plans to introduce a collection for younger women. “Bright Young Things” was a slogan used in conjunction with the college spring break tradition.”
    https://www.facebook.com/victoriassecret?fref=ts

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  33. Exactly right. I’m a 22 year old and I despise the messages the culture sends me about my supposed ‘worth’ or even ‘purpose’ as an aesthetic object for men’s use and pleasure. No thanks. I did purchase underwear from VS in the past because I considered it “good quality” and lasting, but I have reconsidered purchasing in the future. If VS is going to start sexualizing girls my sister’s age, I can no longer justify supporting them, no matter how long the products last. Please reconsider this new line.

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  34. Besides the main point of this letter being a great one, I love love love that this father & REVEREND says he doesn’t want his daughter to think a boy (OR GIRL!!!!) will like her better based on her underwear. Go dad for having an open mind while also being a part of Christianity.

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  35. Well. I’m not a Christian, and I have no children, I’ve been a rock singer in a heavy metal band and I have a tattoo. But I completely agree with Rev. Dolive, underwear with racy sayings on them (and thongs?!?) is inappropriate for middle-school-aged children. They’re inappropriate for girls under 18, too, IMHO. There is plenty of time to grow up and be sexy. Save it for later, and wear age-appropriate (modest) clothing until you are an adult. Then you can wear whatever you wish, and be responsible for the consequences.

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  36. I don’t think Victoria’s Secrets cares much about the decency or morality of this new line of cloths. It’s all about the bottom line. If they can make money with “Bright Young Things” than that’s what they’l do.

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  37. Purity and Integrity ….innocence and modesty this is what we want for our children. we want that to be the goal and we want them to be pleasing to Gods ways.

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  38. Great response to the direction of Victora’s Secret for sure. The bad thing is that like political greed, VS corporate greed will out weight our voices regardless.

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  39. I completly agree with everything said in this letter,our girls grow up way to fast now as it is .I love your stuff and alwaya purchase all my undergarments from you,but if you come out with this line I believe you will losealot of ppl please reconsider your decision.

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  40. You are all wrong & should take the time to do some investigating & reasearch before you start to slander a companies name as i am a mother of a teenage daughter myself & totally agree with & understand where this father is coming from he has got his information all wrong the “young bright things” slogan was actually for a spring break themed line that they were coming out with for the college girls when they went on spring break this year as is shown in this post that i have copied & pasted right of the Victoria’s Secret Facebook page: (“In response to questions we recently received, Victoria’s Secret PINK is a brand for college-aged women. Despite recent rumors, we have no plans to introduce a collection for younger women. “Bright Young Things” was a slogan used in conjunction with the college spring break tradition.”)

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  41. I agree 100%! As a child I can remember my father and mother making me change my clothes because my attire was not appropriate or would send the wrong message. Undershirts were a necessity in the fall and winter months before maturity. As I got older I wouldn’t dare let my bra strap be seen much less make it lacy and colorful for all to see. I look at the way some preteens and teens are “allowed” to dress and think to myself what are their parents thinking. Unfortunately, if the lingerie is availabe people will buy it. My husband and I are raising 3 boys and the girls that dress inappropriately are the ones we will warn them about. How do teach your boys to repect girls if they don’t respect themselves?

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  42. As a grandfather of two granddaughter who are 15 and 18 who lost their father in Iraq in 2005 I have tried to guide and direct them as much as an old man can. Their mother has done a fantastic job in raising them alone the past 7+ years since Tommy’s death. So much has changed in our culture and it’s like how you enter a dark restaurant and it’s hard to see…..slowly you become acclimated to the dark and slowly it doesn’t seem so dark. This is the subtlety of culture change. A business like Victoria Secret, Abercrombie and Finch etc keep pushing the envelope not to mention the acceptance of lifestyles that would have been unthinkable in my youth Thank you for bringing this to light and know there are thousand like me who support you and your stand against the degradation of our society. God Bless you.

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  43. Stop spending your money with them and tell others not to and then they wouldn’t have the ability to try and make these kinds of lines whatsoever… The Pink line influences 12 yo quiet as its kept that is the youngest of their target market fir that line!

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  44. I agree with this father 100%. How sad to target such a young age. At 49 years of age, I can’t imagine anything like this when I was a young girl. Why destroy this generation’s innocence any further?

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  46. I’m sorry but I disagree. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but know the company. I’ve worked at VS for 4 years and the target market for the PINK line is college students. They had all of their “spring break” items a few weeks ago, when the college spring break falls. If you don’t want your children wearing underwear with “call me” on it, then don’t let them shop there. But tons of mothers and daughters come in and buy good quality bras for both mom and daughter and simply don’t buy those underwear. You make it seem like every pair of underwear in that store has lace on it. Sure, VS sells sexy bras and underwear, but the majority of people end up with basic colors because they want good quality. Just like any company has diversity in their products, VS offers the same. No one wants to acknowledge the fact that they sell basic cotton panties and bras, but focus on the small portion of the PINK line that has writing on it. Wearing matching bright colored bra and panties makes you feel good! And when moms and daughters come shopping together, the daughters seem to have a lot more respect for what mom thinks is appropriate. It’s just like going into a clothing store… shirts come with conservative necklines as well as low cut options, they are trying to appeal to everyone. But just because there are less conservative options, just like in victoria’s secret, doesn’t mean that all of the products are “too sexy” or “too whatever you think” for girls looking for their first bras.

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  47. It is a proven fact that the way a girl dresses influences the way she acts. Let girls be pure and proud of their purity and maybe she won’t be choosing a name for her baby at 15 and realizing he really didn’t love her, just what she gave him Beverly

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  48. You’ve been out of school too long. I was in 7th grade in 2000 and in 7th grade, for holidays and birthdays girls get each other gifts. As 12yr olds, they were buying each other thongs and other VS gear. You’d better believe they were opened in front of boys in the hall/at lunch. They knew exactly what underwear girls were wearing. And don’t think the boys weren’t sitting strategically by the stairs so they could look up skirts. Teens are taught younger and younger to objectify

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