If the kids actually like it themselves without being pressured by parents, it's probably fine, even though pageants are still disgusting. However, most kids seem like their mothers are living through them and it's not okay. It's even worse that everyone just finds it 'adorable' or 'funny' and that they're getting stupid television shows about their lives of being forced to perfection when they're like five. Ridiculous and just horrible.

Some mothers go too far. But I was a child pageant contestant when I was a little girl, and I never felt unhappy about it. It was the best thing ever! Except that in my country we didn't go as far as they do in the West. We didn't have fake tan etc (maybe because it was also the 90's, so it was a little different). There were fake teeth though ;D

I always found it fun. But then again, my mother never pressured me to be 'perfect'. If I forgot my dance routines, I'd just improvise and it was fine. Actually, I was so cute back then that even if I got confused and called out to my mom "What do I do now? D:" everyone just laughed and thought it was adorable. I won plenty of awards even with situations like this. It was basically focused more on the natural charisma of the child on stage, rather than a scripted performance.

But I loved it. I loved picking outfits (many of which my mother hand-made), I loved making up dance routines (which we also did ourselves), I loved the attention, the pictures, being on stage... It was just reaaaly great and super-fun for me as a little girl. I got to wear things I couldn't wear on daily basis. Basically, I miss it and wish I could have continued to do it. 

True, I remember well many mothers shouting at their daughters backstage etc, and I rarely saw them get any awards- they weren't enjoying it at all, and it was easy to see, so yeah, and any logical mother will stop sending her kid to those if they have to lash out $300 on every entrance fee just to come back home with nothing. Unless they're crazy, in which case I'd be a little concerned for the child's safety.

It becomes a problem when this whole concept is being laregly mediatized and when parents are forcing their children in some way or another. I saw a video of where a mom was forcing her daughter to use spray tan and also forcefully plucking her eyebrows. Seriously, who plucks their 5yo daughter's eyebrows?

I want to talk about this through my personal experience as a kid. When I was in third grade, my teacher selected me to participate in the school pageant. My mom let me, because I said I really, really wanted to join. Well, I was a kid, so I thought I would be popular if I joined that. After the pageant, I realized that I didn't like such events. It was tiring for me to practice walking every afternoon on uncomfortable shoes. On the night of the event itself, the makeup made my skin feel thick and heavy and I couldn't eat properly because I hated the taste of lipstick. My hair reeked of chemical because the stylist wanted doll curls, so they sprayed a lot of stuff on it. The worst part was when we had to stand under bright lights for a length of time, just smiling and waiting for the ceremonies to resume. Maybe it's just me, maybe I'm more of a sports-oriented kid, but I really, really hated the whole experience. When I have a daughter (or son) of my own, maybe I will let them have the experience as well, if they wanted it, but I would never encourage them to take it up as a career or a business opportunity.

I think it depends on the level of child pageant we are talking here. I see no problem with having a cutesy little fashion show either at school or as a local thing where the kids dress up as princesses/princes/whatever. What I do have a problem with is national television where little kids dance around on stage in more than their body weight's worth of makeup and glitter, all the while trying to be miniature adults in both outfit and mannerisms.

Despite the blatant sexual precociousness of these children, I agree that one of the worst parts is ruining them as people by spoiling the shit out of them. No one likes an idiot who thinks the world and everyone in it belongs to them.

People with curves are beautiful, people swimming in their fat, entertaining this fat with greasy unhealthy food and doing the same to their children are disgusting and shouldn't be authorized to have children, they are a danger to them.

This fat cow that calls herself a mother should be ashamed of herself and what she teaches her children, and she should be very ashamed of exploiting her children to get money and fame for herself.

Sorry for the term fat cow, but people mistreating their children like this disgust me.

I hope the people who started child pageants get eaten by titans.