Being 12 sucks, but does that mean that time should be taken away? Gen-Z had Bratz, Disney Channel on cable and even Kik downloaded on iPhone fives. Millennials had MTV runs, classic YouTube and cringey Tumblr posts. 

What about the preteens of this new world? Generation Alpha has been immersed in the digital world to the point of blurred lines of reality. What is cool can be found on TikTok, and Yondr pouches get passed out during school to combat their addiction. Bed rot is in the vocabulary of 12-year-olds as they scroll on Pinterest and play Roblox on FaceTime with friends instead of going outside, walking down suburban neighborhoods and interacting in person. 

With a digital world encompassing every element of the passing time of tweenhood, there should not be any confusion as to why North West is being photographed with a dermal on her finger before she learns algebra. The media is relaying discourse as if this is a celebrity issue, an objectifying issue and/or a post-digital world issue. However, I believe it’s more serious than “kids not being kids anymore,” but rather the erasure of tween spaces, culture and community adults have stripped away from these kids. 

The phrase “I am cringey but I am free” is more than a TikTok sound, it’s a genuine truth about human experimentation. No photos on social media means no potential social humiliation later, leading to finding one’s authentic self embarrassing. With the perpetual use of media, there is no empathy for cringey kids just being themselves, because they will be shunned at school tomorrow after their peers “doom-scroll” and find the “tea” on how they presented or acted yesterday. That is why, on a very public scale, 12-year-old North West is posted out with body piercings, mini skirts and a “face card” decorated with makeup. 

“The controversy grew when fans spotted a dermal piercing on North’s hand during the trip. Photos showed redness near the jewelry, sparking concern,” Musictime’s Rovelyn Barba said.

However, I believe it’s also important to note that it might not be real, according to Olivia Burke of LadBible. 

“The Kardashian clan have not yet confirmed whether the dermal piercing is legit, so some people also still have their fingers crossed that North was simply wearing some kind of costume jewelry,” Burke said. 

On a lesser known scale, other kids her age manifest other ways to fit in with what’s cool on the internet; it is not just a Kardashian family phenomenon. 

During the awkward years of 11-13, children do not have the spaces they once had. Kids are not allowed to be kids when they have to face the desperation to fit in online and believe that their true childish nature will turn them into an object of social media ridicule. 

Lecya Santiago from Medium explained that, “When these tweens are watching TikToks about ‘glam makeup’ and ‘coquette-core,’ they surpass what is age-appropriate because they are being influenced by every 30 second video on their ‘for you’ page.” 

The solution is rather simple: if our society thinks West looks “too grown-up,” let’s shift the culture to accept the inherent cringiness of being in middle school, and to let these children have space to express themselves. Let kids be kids and be sympathetic to why they feel as if they cannot. 

Kim Kardashian most likely understands how the internet will judge her daughter regardless of how she fits beauty standards, trends or waves of expression and perhaps wants her to be protected from being made a laughing stock. The media can argue if it’s right or not, but the underlying reason is far deeper than any child’s prepubescent or pubescent look. It is the element of being picked on and picked apart from a simple photo that, in this age, is a constant fear.

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Hi! I’m Hannah Planey, A Magazine’s editor-in-chief. My staff and I are committed to bringing you the most important and entertaining news from the realms of fashion, beauty and culture. We are full-time students and hard-working journalists. While we get support from the student media fee and earned revenue such as advertising, both of those continue to decline. Your generous gift of any amount will help enhance our student experience as we grow into working professionals. Please go here to donate to A Magazine.