Abercrombie & Fitch sells padded bikini tops to young girls

BOSTON -- Abercrombie and Fitch is known for its racy ads for adults. But some say they went too far by trying to sell push-up bathing suits to young girls.

Push-up bras and bathing suits are certainly not unusual or shocking - except when they’re made for little girls.

“That’s weird. There’s no need for that,” said Allie Ellis.

“They don’t need push-up bras! They don’t even need bras,” said another woman.

It’s the latest shocker from Abercrombie and Fitch - long known for pushing the envelope when it comes to sexuality and teens.

The push-up tops are made for girls as young as 7-years-old.

“I just don’t think that there’s a reason for 7-year-old girls to be worried about having their bodies look good,” said Ellis. “They should be playing.”

While many express discomfort with the products, a local professor says this kind of thing is actually dangerous.

“It gets young girls to think about themselves in sexual ways before that’s developmentally appropriate,” said Professor Gail Dines of Wheelock College.

And she added that the potentially negative psychological effects are not limited to the young girls.

“It sends out really bad signals to adult men about young girls being appropriate sexual objects, objects of sexual desire for young men,” said Dines.

In regards to sending a message, Abercrombie and Fitch removed the words “push-up” from their website, but the padded tops are still there.

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