When We Make Political Pawns of Children

“Every January, toddlers hold signs with messages that they cannot possibly understand. But children also hold signs they might passively understand, and teenagers hold signs they probably understand, if only imperfectly.”

In 2019, virtually every sphere of consumerism provides an opportunity for political expression. With the emergence of global online marketplaces like Amazon, a seemingly endless selection of politically-branded apparel, accessories, and homeware is available. Even the most bizarre (and otherwise apolitical) products are never more than a few clicks away. From Donald Trump shower curtains to Bernie Sanders barbecue tongs, it’s all for sale. Assuredly, most of the people who buy these products are adults; such ostentatiousness demands a level of political resolve that tends to come with age. It is, therefore, disturbing to observe how much of this merchandise is designed for young children—and perhaps even more disturbing, how much is designed for infants. The market for politically exhibitory baby onesies serves as a strangely specific but damningly symptomatic example of this phenomenon. While independent retailers sell the lion’s share, some politicians have taken to selling onesies directly on their official websites. Kamala Harris sells her “FOR THE PEOPLE” line in sizes ranging from 3-6 months to 18-24 months. Justin Trudeau’s “Future Liberal Prime Minister” onesies shrink in the dryer, so he recommends shopping a size up. Indeed, for expectant mothers and fathers, there are plenty of options for turning babies into adorable, unassuming little billboards.

And while this sort of gaudy parenting might be of little consequence in the earliest stages of life, the line between impenetrable infancy and impressionable childhood is blurry. As children grow, onesies become t-shirts, and the once innocuous projection of a parent’s partisan inclinations soon forms the basis of an incipient political worldview. Lamentably, this sartorial tendency seems to be indicative of a broader cultural issue: the premature and domineering politicization of youth. Far too regularly, children are pressured and primed for a lifetime of tribal fidelity by their overbearing parents, teachers, religious leaders, and by the dogmatism of public institutions more generally.

Some of the largest political stories of recent months are illustrative of this intergenerational hegemony that so regularly facilitates civic engagement.