Back in September, we raised the issue of plastic surgery apps being targeted on iTunes as children’s games. Recently, Endangered Bodies Australia has released a petition to further solidify the need for android sources such as Apple, Google and Amazon to remove these programs from their online stores.
Making a plea on behalf of her two children, Endangered Bodies representative Danni Rowlands has taken a personal approach on how she hopes to raise her children to respect their bodies and removing the underlying message that often gets channeled through social media – looks DO NOT determine one’s success and happiness.
“Our societies are saturated with images of perfect and unattainable bodies, with over 21 million cosmetic procedures being performed throughout the world in 2015 according to the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. The dissatisfaction many adults face with their bodies has trickled down to our children. Statistics from The National Eating Disorder Association in the U.S. show 81% of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat. In the UK, the 2016 Girlguiding Girls’ Attitudes Survey found more than a third of girls aged seven to ten felt women were valued more for their appearance than their abilities. Globally, children deserve to be challenged and inspired by their toys, not to spend their free time worrying about how they look.” – Danni Rowlands
Endangered Bodies has previously supported organisations with this cause. Back in 2014, they supported Everyday Sexism’s plea via Twitter to have these apps removed from iTunes and Google Play stores. Less than a day later, the apps were successfully removed.
Source: Twitter (@EverydaySexism)
The games, featuring colourful cartoon patients, give users the opportunity to “enhance beauty” by slicing, sculpting and sucking their patient through procedures including nose jobs, face lifts, tummy tucks and liposuction. These games have been marketed on iTunes as children’s games, targeting age groups of 9 years and older due to the “infrequent/mild realistic violence”.
So far, Danni has received over 3583 signatures, with hopes to reach 5000. You can sign Danni’s petition here.
It’s hard enough for our girls to avoid images which contribute to body dissatisfaction and set them on the path to body image and mental health issues without games like this. These games should be withdrawn immediately