Club Libby Lu Bites the Dust

As a small business owner, I don't often applaud when a company goes out of business. A dream dies, people lose their jobs, and it's awful. But today's the exception.

Club Libby Lu, which specializes in selling makeovers to tween girls, is being shut down by its parent company, Saks. As my friend Lisa Ray of Parents for Ethical Marketing tweeted this morning, that's something to celebrate! This is a dream that deserves to rest in peace.

As Consumerist.com said:

"For $25-$40 girls could paint themselves with temporary tattoos, make bracelets
and get a "Club Libby Du." (We think that last thing is a hairstyle. At least,
we're hoping that it is.)"

But what truly made me happy they're closing was reading the company's mission on their website:

"At Club Libby Lu®, our mission is to create special memories by encouraging
tween girls to express their imaginations and individuality. Club Libby Lu
offers products and experiences that promote a unique shopping experience that
makes every girl feel special. Our staff (called Club Counselors), “Club”
environment and merchandise mix provide the ultimate girl experience. Girls join
the Club, where they become V.I.P.s (Very Important Princesses®) and enjoy a
fun, safe and special place where they can unlock their inner princess!™ "

Of course, I'm 150% in favor of encouraging girls to express their imaginations and individuality. That's why I founded New Moon in 1992. What bothers me about Club Libby Lu is how they equate shopping and makeovers with girls' "imaginations and individuality."

In fact, Club Libby Lu shopping and makeovers are not about imagination, self-expression or individuality. They are about conforming to someone else's idea of who you should be and how you should look. What Club Libby Lu really does is indoctrinate little girls into a culture of comparing themselves to others and striving to change themselves into someone else. Yuck.

I am very, very sorry for the people who will lose their jobs. But I'm not one bit sorry that girls won't have Club Libby Lu shaping their sense of who they are as they grow up.

Toeing the Party Line, Not

Like everyone else, my mind is on our new President-elect and the extraordinary grassroots and voting efforts that resulted in his victory during these challenging times. But I 'm also thinking about our children and how they grow into responsible, active citizens and voters.

In the days surrounding this monumental election, New Moon girls have been learning about voting through our “Mock Election,” where girls voted for a presidential candidate and learned more about important issues facing our country today.


At same time, in discussions with our Girls Editorial Board and girl writers, we’ve observed that the vast majority of our girls hold the political beliefs of their parents. Lior wrote about this for New Moon in Under the Influence.

So where does this leave us as parents? What do we need to teach our children about voting and the election process if our kids are just going to vote like us anyway? Over at Struggling Teens , Rose Mulligan writes that parents must help their children understand politicians in terms of character and achievement, rather than simply toeing the party line. How do you do this with your children during the campaign season and beyond? I'd love to hear about it.


In our Mock Election, we’ve been impressed by how much New Moon girls know about the individual candidates and their stances on issues in this election. And as we move forward, let's remember to keep teaching our girls how important it is to elect our politicians based on knowledge of their viewpoints and goals.

Who Can Be President?

As our nation celebrates the election of our first African-American President, I'm very aware of the deep symbolism this historic event holds. Senator McCain and President Bush, among many others, acknowledged the importance of seeing the highest African-American glass ceiling shattered. It's important to adults, but even more important to children.

Children see the entire world through the lens of their individual experiences. Now that Barack Obama will be Mr. President, kids will quickly see that as "normal." There's nothing like reality to change a child's worldview. How wonderful!

A recent message from our friends at The White House Project explains further:

With so many glass ceilings shattered, we take for granted that little
girls know they can grow up to be whatever they want. But according to a new
study, one in four children believes it is illegal for women and minorities to
hold the office of president. And one in three attribute the lack of female,
African-American and Latino presidents to racial and gender bias among voters.

The same study also found that girls who attributed the lack of female
presidents to discrimination were more likely to report that they could not
really become president, even if they were interested in doing so. "[Children]
have seen [the Presidents] all over the media, on posters, in classroom history
books," said author of the study Rebecca
Bigler in an interview, "yet no one ever explains to them why they have all
been white men. There is never a conversation about that so children start to
come up with their own explanations."

Today is the perfect time to start that conversation with the girl in your
life. The 2008 election has the potential to significantly alter children's
views and presents an excellent opportunity for parents to educate their
children on gender and racial discrimination as well.

Yes, yes, yes! I don't think the gender glass ceiling will be shattered until we have a woman elected president. If we want girls and boys to truly know that women can be presidents, we will need to elect one. Fittingly, as Malia and Sasha get ready to move into the White House with their parents, there's all the more reason to redouble our efforts to get women into the pipeline to the presidency and help all Americans think of a woman president as "normal."

Going on 13: A Documentary About REAL Girls

Recently, I had the privilege of creating a study guide to accompany the new documentary, Going on 13, which follows four girls from ages 9 - 13. I loved this film because it showed REAL GIRLS. I could watch the film again and again (and I did!) because the girls in it became very dear to me. They reminded me of girls I know: of my younger sister, my cousins, and the many amazing girls I've had the opportunity to work with through New Moon. It was so refreshing to see girls who spoke for themselves onscreen; it made me realize anew just how incredibly limited a portrayal the media usually gives girls.

See this film if you can. Even better, see it with other adults who care about or work with girls, or bring the girls you care about to it. The film can be a springboard to discuss many important topics, such as growing up, mental health, sex education, immigration, and more. There is one instance of 'the f word' and some mature subject matter, such as sex education and mental illness, but I find the film appropriate for girls ages 9 and up if they view it with an adult who can help them contextualize and process what they see.

The next screenings are:
1) LA Latino Film Festival Sept 13
2) SF Documentary Film Festival some time in Oct 17-30
3) South Asian Film Festival (NYC) Nov?
4) Leeds (UK) Youth Film Festival April 2009

And here's the trailer:

Sexiness and Girls

Sexiness and girls is a topic I wish I didn't even have to think about. I'm deeply disturbed by the hyper-sexualization pressure girls face today, even when they are very young. From Braatz dolls to World Wrestling tv to videogames and movies, girls are surrounded every day by examples of girls and women dressing, pouting, strutting, bumping & grinding and generally performing like "exotic dancers."

Learning accurate information and facts about sex too soon isn't the issue. That's been shown to be healthy for kids.

The problem is the cynical commercial manipulation of "sexy" media messages given to girls starting at a very young age. These messages teach pre-adolescent, even pre-school age, girls and boys that looking and acting "sexy" is normal, popular and something they need to do. And they also teach girls that they need to buy things to make themselves more sexy because, of course, they don't measure up to the media images.

But, being so young, they don't have the emotional sophistication and psychological development needed to understand what they are being sold. These messages deeply influence how they feel about their bodies, their sexuality, their self-image and how they think about gender and relationships.

As parents we're left with little girls wanting to go on diets, wear make-up, adopt sexy poses, and wear provocative clothing so they can be "sexy," and little boys getting suspended from school for mimicking sexual harassment they've seen in the media. And as parents we're in desperate need of support and guidance on how to fight the deluge of negative results.

That’s why I'm so excited about the new book "So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids" by long-time children’s and media advocates Dr. Jean Kilbourne and Dr. Diane Levin.

It deals with children from infancy through adolescence (and is very much about boys as well as girls) and will spark a lot of discussion and action for you, your family and your colleagues. It's for parents, teachers, and everyone who cares about children. The book helps us understand how sexualization affects children of all ages and genders and gives us practical things to do about it.

So Sexy So Soon provides in-depth analysis of the media's effect on impressionable kids, and gives parents the information, skills, and confidence they need to play a proactive role with their children around sexual issues. It includes poignant stories that demonstrate how our kids internalize what they see and hear, guidelines and sample conversations for talking with kids about these sensitive subjects, and offers practical strategies for counteracting the disturbing messages that bombard our children every day.

Please post a comment here and let me know about the fake and hyper-sexuality messages influencing your girls—and what you think about So Sexy So Soon once you read it.

Hot in California

I'm having a marelous time at Stanford University's profssional publishing course. The weather's been unseasonably hot but it's worth it.

Meeting interesting publishers as well as some of the icons of magazine & book publishing. And everyone's trying to figure out how to use the internet for good, not junk (well, maybe not everyone!).

Visiting www.babycenter.com was particularly thoughtprovoking - wondering if parents of 8-12 year old girls would like to get similarly age-appropriate info about your daughter's growth & development? Would you? Let me know.

New Moon Girl Media YouTube Channel!

Hi everyone,

This is Julia, guest blogging to share my excitement about our new New Moon Girl Media YouTube Channel! The first video posted is a trailer for our orb28 blog for teen girls, which shows New Moon girls in action--brainstorming, working together, speaking out, and making their dreams for orb28 into a reality. I am so honored and inspired to work with these girls, and it was quite nostalgic editing the footage from the retreat into this trailer! (I also really enjoy the accompanying song, "Race You Back Home," and am glad indie female songwriter, Elizabeth Ziman let us use it! Check her out with her band, Elizabeth and the Catapult.)



The New Moon Girl Media YouTube channel is also the kick-off to more multi-media-filled days at New Moon. We'd love to receive your videos on why YOU love New Moon! Why do you think New Moon is positively unique? Why is it important in your life and for girls everywhere?

You can submit your video to add to the trailer excitement! And we of course welcome your written testimonials of why you value New Moon as well.

Please help us spread the word about this video and our YouTube channel by rating, commenting, and sharing the trailer with family and friends. I'm excited to hear your feedback...Thanks!