'Mommy and me' pole dancing classes fiercely divide opinion

A pole dancing studio has been accused of acting inappropriately and “irresponsibly” after launching a new series of classes aimed at mothers and children.

Pink Pole Studios, in Atlanta, Georgia, first advertised its ‘Mommy and Me’ workshops at the end of last month, encouraging mums to “bring [their] little one for spins, tricks, and climbs.”

Touting the class as “a fun learning experience for both,” it promised to showcase participants’ “newfound skills” and highlight the “strength and fitness [they’ve] gained.”

Following the first lesson, which took place on 6 January, the studio announced that it would begin offering regular pole dance classes for kids, as well as its Mommy and Me workshops.

“After 3 years of anticipation, it's finally happening,” it wrote in an Instagram post.

“We are here to break stigmas and set the bar. Remember that—it's here to stay.”

Alongside the caption was footage recorded during the class, showing children beaming as they span around, climbed or slid down the poles, as their mums watched on, or joined them, proudly.

The studio clearly anticipated negativity from viewers, so disabled comments from its posts about the “kids pole program”.

Still, that didn’t stop critics from piling in on social media, with numerous commentators sharing their disbelief and disapproval at the scheme on X/Twitter.

One fumed: “Mommy and me pole dancing????? I know they bout to hit that massive reset button and wipe out civilization cus y’all really done lost y’all damn rabbit a*s minds [sic].”

Another wrote: “Mommy and me pole dancing classes is actually insane. I get it’s a good workout but damn.”

Others were less disturbed by the classes themselves than by the studio’s decision to share footage of the children dancing.

One argued: “I think it’s very irresponsible of that mommy and me pole dancing studio to record and upload videos featuring kids in their workshops. Even even more irresponsible for the mothers to allow their children to be filmed and uploaded on the internet as well.”

Another added: “In my personal opinion pole dancing doesn't need to be for the kids. But if you are gonna host a mommy and me pole dancing class don't post videos of it to [social media]. Especially when you have girl spreading their legs in it. It just opens them up to be sexualized.”

And a third said: “I'm not even about to engage with that video of the mommy and me pole dancing classes because I know there are sickos on this app. I'd like for that video to get as little exposure as possible.”

Participants in the Mommy and Me workshop looked happy and relaxed(pinkpolestudios/Instagram)

Meanwhile, others stressed that pole dancing is a great form of exercise and that, in this case, it should be separated from its more explicit cultural connotations.

“I hate that some people view pole dancing as inherently sexual when it’s actually a great way to stay fit, have fun, and build confidence and strength,” one wrote.

“Contemporary dancers and gymnasts wear similar clothing as pole dancer do and [people] don't complain,” pointed out another.

“Pole dancing is a skill. There are pole dancing competitions that have nothing to do with stripping. It's an art form.”

Others noted that pole dancing is considered a serious sport in some countries, with one writing: “Olympic training starts at a very young age. And to be honest, the pole beam in the Olympics is much like the skills needed for this. Very similar. Unfortunately, pole dancing has a stigma for being sexual. But that stigma isn’t in all countries, just mostly in the US.”

However, scores of commentators remained unconvinced.

“Pole dancing is too attached to stripping for it to be appropriate for kids,” one insisted. “There are less sexual forms or dancing/sport.”

In light of the uproar, Pink Pole Studios owner Tia Harris defended her decision to run the kids’ classes in an interview with Fox26.

Speaking to host Isiah Carey, Harris pointed to how pole dancing “has been recognised as a sport and will be part of the Olympics soon” and that she and her colleagues view it as a legitimate form of exercise.

“When we look at this, we're looking at fitness, we're not looking at anything sexual,” she said.

Harris insisted the classes are all about fitness(Fox26)

She then emphasised that her studio is not a “stripper place”, noting that “adults here don't even strip, so there's no way kids are stripping”.

“We're not sexualising kids – kids are fully clothed,” she continued. “The trained instructors are also fully clothed, they're not doing any dancing, any [choreography] is strictly pole fitness.

“It's nothing different than gymnastics or playing outside on the monkey bars.

“It's a different apparatus. It's just something that the people aren't used to. And we're not gonna shy away from it. We're gonna introduce it to our kids and allow this apparatus to take us where we need to go.”

Harris went on to describe how much participants had enjoyed the first Mommy and Me session, claiming that one of the mums told her that it had made her son “feel like Spider-Man.”

Concluding, she said that her own daughter – a pole fitness instructor – had been doing it for 10 years and “has never been a stripper.”

“She does this full-time, makes a livable salary, is doing very well, and is looking to join the circus soon,” she revealed. “It's just a pathway to something different.”

She added: “Our Black and brown girls should be able to experience things that other kids experience without being sexualised.

“These people that are saying, ‘They're gonna be in a strip club,’ they're sexualising kids.

“We're not, we don't see sex. We see kids doing fitness just like kids at a playground.”

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