The Bigger Context of the Criticism of the First Daughters

  Sorry to break it off like this; the first post just got so long!
  Also, what I'm going to address here doesn't solely talk about the First Daughters' situation.

  I think what my biggest issue with Lauten's comments is that it perpetuates what I am going to call the "war on women".
  The other day, one girl pulled up for me a petition created by the public for Beyonce and Jay-Z to "Comb her hair", referring to their two-year-old daughter, Blue Ivy.
  And I was just like, "...what?"
  I recall reading somewhere else (I regret that I cannot site this to give the person credit; I just read it in passing) that it's exactly these kinds of things that cause black girls see themselves in such negative ways.
  I absolutely agree. And I feel like this situation with the First Daughters is another example of this.
  I mean, these are children we are attacking. And for what?
  I can kind of understand the perspective fans have about Blue Ivy: "All that money they have and they can't even comb her hair?"
  But honestly, at the end of the day, what do we have to do with that? Why do the lives of these superstars concern us that much? Shouldn't we be focusing on more pressing matters, like our own lives, or global climate change...?
  But this "war" extends beyond black girls. There is a whole industry that thrives off of belittling women for what they wear or how they look. Take a look at the show that the late Joan Rivers used to run, called "Fashion Police". It revolved around criticizing the way women look. And yes, they do talk about males as well, but let's just be sincere and accept the fact that women are held under more scrutiny in this area than men are.
  And it's these kinds of things that create these boxes that women start believing they have to fit in. Because everything that is advertised to be beautiful is 5'10, size 2 and seemingly flawless.
  This is the "war on women" that I mentioned above. Of course, we could also talk about how women are still paid less than men. But what I'm referring to here is the war on female self-esteem. The public perpetuates criticism of women based on looks, rather than more important things, like personality, values and skill level.
  And now, in 2014, we are seeing this war being taken to a new level, as the public begins to attack children.
  If you ask me, things need to change. Stop telling women how to dress, how to eat, and how to live. Stop telling people to style their daughter's hair in a particular way. And STOP ATTACKING CHILDREN.
  Thanks for reading, and make sure to comment!