Pageant parents are responsible for the exploitation of their childrenUntil the death of 6-year-old beauty queen Jonbenet Ramsey, the The children's competition circuit has never been fully recognized on a national scale. Over the past 17 years, many shows have attempted to give the country a glimpse into the life of a child beauty queen, but they tend to be mostly dramatic. Although some media sources may mislead viewers into believing that the children's competition system is exploitative and sexualizes young contestants, research shows that it is the decisions of some parents that are truly to blame, not their parents. competition themselves. Although the competition system can be a place for new relationships to germinate, for many it only destroys them. Every parent wants their child to avoid the mistakes they made earlier in life in order to give their best. Many pageant parents take it to the next level and use the child to relive life and grab all the opportunities they might have missed growing up. How is a child supposed to live his own life if he is forced to be a pawn in his parents' game? Not only do competitions affect the parent-child relationship, they also affect the way children choose friends for the rest of their lives. Heidi Gerkin, a former pageant star with titles such as America's Junior Miss, says she was more comfortable with more male friends because of her previous experiences with misleading friendships in pageant systems. She says, “Even now, every time I meet someone, I wonder if they really love me” (Goode). The relationship that competition systems affect the most is the relationship with oneself. It's very rare for a girl to claim she's never felt embarrassed, especially... middle of paper... what matters is winning. Whether the price to pay is the dignity of their child or the future of their child. These children should be given the chance to make their own decisions rather than living their parents' lives. Works cited Baxter, Brittany. Toddlers and tiaras: The pageant moms went crazy. Internet. fystoddlesandtiaras.wordpress.com. Bello, Mark. Beauty pageants: do parents bully their children by accident? Internet. www.livingsafer.com. Blue, Alexis. Princess by Proxy: When children's beauty pageants are not about children. 2012. Arizona. Internet. uanews.org. Goode, Laura. I was a pageant star: six grown women look back. New York. 2012. New York Media. Internet. thecut.com.Michael and Matthew. “Pageant Moms and Other Scary Things – A Dad's Take on Toddlers and Tiaras.” 2012. Houston Chronicle. Web.Pageant Mom: Did She Put Her Daughter in Danger?. 2013. Internet. drphil.com.