Stuart Hazell pleaded guilty to the murder of 12-year-old
Tia Sharp after five days on trial. Videos he had taken of the girl sleeping
and applying cream to her legs revealed his paedophilic desires for and obsession
with her, and chilling evidence of a brutal sexual attack ending in a fatal
smothering was presented in court.
The 38-year-old man reportedly amended his plea of innocence
in light of overwhelming indicators to the contrary verdict, apparently hoping to spare
those in the courtroom the tribulation of poring over photographic mementos of
his horrific acts and the torment of contemplating the torture the girl
endured.
While seemingly capturing footage of the girl for his perverse
pleasure, Hazell was also viewing pornography of a paedophilic and incestuous
nature. The accessibility of these illegal sites is both baffling and harrowing,
but also disconcerting is the fact that the man has utilised legitimate sites
in order to seek gratification.
The Guardian reports that Hazell "visited legal
internet sites such as fashionmag.com and carried out searches for young girls
in sexual postures", without further information. The unsettling fact that this
apparently brings up results is not acknowledged in this particular
piece.
Should I expect to find images of under-18s in compromising and
suggestive poses on legitimate websites?
There should be no circumstances in which material of this
nature might be viewed in a lawful manner, so the fact that it seemingly can be
suggests some highly troubling societal issues, and evidences many people's
protestations about the increasing prevalence of the sexualisation of children
in the public eye.
Fashion plays a significant role in this worrying trend, and
many people are calling for change and stricter legislation in the industry. The
highly-esteemed publication Vogue experienced widespread criticism after
featuring ten-year-old model Thylane
Lena-Rose Blondeau, posing provocatively and wearing make-up and stilettos,
in its glossy pages.
Even brands which use adult models seek out those who look
younger, and as such evidence a concerning perspective of women and
attractiveness when presenting them in sexualised situations. The Advertising
Standards Authority (ASA) recently banned an American
Apparel ad which showed a sullen, fresh-faced model exposing her knickers
and wearing knee-high socks.
However, the problem is more widespread, with Disney now
coming under fire for allegedly sexualising
Brave protagonist Princess Merida by overhauling her appearance, giving her
a tighter dress and more voluptuous hips. In the film, the character is 16
years old. It brings into question who these companies are trying to impress when
they illustrate young girls in this way.
Would Hazell have felt and acted upon paedophilic desires
for Tia Sharp regardless of legal websites depicting children in suggestive
poses and the sexualisation of under-18s? Quite probably. Does
this mean that we should sit back as these youngsters are exploited, and as the sexualisation
of children becomes normalised in the public hive mind? I think not.
