It's never okay to sexualize babies. That's something we can all agree on and probably shouldn't have to say. But that doesn't mean that we have to call the Outrage Squad on anyone who makes an innocent joke about a baby who is spread-eagle and loving life, like one dad did on Twitter.
New mom Harley posted these photos of her daughter with the caption 'Daddy was not having it. LMFAO.'
One photo has her infant daughter laying on her back with her legs spread a mile wide, grinning and happy as a clam. The next photo has her father's hands holding her legs together.
Social media went bananas.
Many criticized the parents for 'sexualizing' their infant.
Some people, like the Twitter user above, even said that this father shouldn't be left alone with his daughter, implying that the photo showed he was thinking about her in a sexual way.
Others said the father was turning innocent behavior into sexual behavior and trying to control his daughter's body.
But many people didn't see the problem and said it was just a joke.
The mom who posted the original photos got on Twitter and defended the father.
Of course this father doesn't come rushing over to squeeze his daughter's legs together every time she stretches her legs. He was just kidding!
Now, this poor woman has people accusing her husband of being a pedophile.
Twitter, I love you, but you are the very worst.
Can we please save our outrage for times when it's needed?
Let's focus our energy where it's needed: protest for equal pay and fight for women's rights as citizens. Yes, we should, of course, point out instances of sexism when we see them. But this ain't it, folks.
This dad wasn't slut shaming his 3-month-old. We need to be able to tell the difference between what's important and what is a nothing-burger that should be ignored. This is the latter.
Stand down, Pious Twitter. At ease.
