Little Girls Gyrate to Beyonce for Dance Competition

This week, a video of eight- and nine-year old little girls performing at a national dance competition lit up the internet. Why? Perhaps it is because the girls were wearing sexy two-piece outfits while grinding and gyrating to Beyonce's "All the Single Ladies." Watch it for yourself:

Listen, there is no doubt that these young ladies are incredibly talented dancers. Nor, I doubt, do they completely grasp the intensely sexual nature of many of their dance moves. It is not their responsibility. That falls to the dance teachers and parents.

So what exactly are the parents saying? Well, they aren't complaining about their young daughters being dressed in suggestive clothing or performing moves better suited to over 21 clubs on a Saturday night. No, they say the costumes and performance are a-okay. It's all just being taken out of context. Cory Miller, father of one of the dancers, told Good Morning America that "The girls weren't meant to be viewed by millions of people" and that this was all  "completely normal for dancing." Apparently is just peachy for an eight-year-old child to bump-and-grind for an audience of hundreds, but just not millions. Ummm ... did I miss something here?

Thankfully, not everyone agrees that this is normal, or even acceptable, for a young girls' dance competition. Katie Hignett, a dance studio owner in New Hampshire, said this of the controversial routine: "I am disgusted that this smut receives high scores at competitions. It gives dance a bad name." Hignett also mentioned her disapproval of this video of the same girls competing last year when they were just seven.

Personally, I find it nearly impossible to believe that the best way to showcase these girls' obvious talents is in burlesque-inspired clothing and sexually suggestive dance moves. If dancing like that is age appropriate for eight-year old-children, I don't know what to think. I happen to believe it is downright dangerous to teach young girls that the best way to gain praise and acceptance is through overt sexuality. For heaven's sake, can't we just let little girls be little girls?