The video: In a "Today" interview, Jennifer and Duane Tesch of Madison Heights, MI, bemoan the fact that their young daughter Kennedy, 6, was kicked off a local flag-football cheerleading squad after the Tesches questioned the appropriateness of one of the chants. (The lyrics: "Our backs ache, our skirts are too tight, we shake our booties from left to right.") Though Kennedy could technically return to the field after a year's "probation," her father says her cheerleading days are over: "We're probably going to look to get her into gymnastics."
The reaction:"I'm torn," says Paula Bernstein at Babble. It's certainly "inappropriate for kids to be saying these words," and "I'm appalled by anything that sexualizes children," but some of the media's reaction to the chant — Fox News invoked pedophilia — "sounds just a bit alarmist to me." Are we becoming overly sensitized to this issue? "I remember my friends and I (back in the 70s) singing a similar tune." Putting a six-year-old on "probation"? gripes Hortense Smith at Jezebel. What a "classy and adult way to handle a parents' concerns." The only takeaway for Kennedy, here, is that "speaking out about your concerns is a one-way ticket to punishment." Watch the clip:
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Doom: The Dark Ages – an 'exhilarating' prequelThe Week Recommends Legendary shooter adds new combat options from timed parries to melee attacks and a 'particularly satisfying' shield charge
-
7 US cities to explore on a microtripThe Week Recommends Not enough vacation days? No problem.
-
Sudoku medium: May 14, 2025The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
