Kid-shaming: is this new trend funny or cruel?
The latest US craze sees children publicly shamed by their parents on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for their bad behaviour
Kid-shaming is the new parenting craze that has taken US social media channels by storm.
Parents write their child’s ‘crime’ on a sign and then make their child hold up the sign, or wear it round their neck, while they take a picture and then post it up on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.
If you look at our pictures, all of which have been shared on the Twitter hashtag #KidShaming, you can see that one parent has kid-shamed a little boy for tipping 2 boxes of cereal onto the floor at different times on the same day.
And, in another, a little girl is kid-shamed in a police-mug-shot style post for cutting her own hair.
The shaming trend originated online with pet-owners, who found it a 'funny' way to share their frustration at their dog's or cat's antisocial behaviour.
There was one memorable dog-shaming post, featuring a pug wearing a sign saying, “I eat crayons and poop rainbows,” that went viral.
But should parents be buying into the trend and 'shaming' their children?
Many kid-shaming fans say it's just a light-hearted way to share your parenting frustrations. Others see it as a kind of 21st-century version of the naughty step: your child may not like it much but they soon learn their lesson.
But critics say kid-shaming is cruel. They reckon sharing your child's momentary naughtiness with millions of strangers is humiliating – maybe even abusive – especially if your child isn't even old enough to be able to read what's written on his or her 'crime sign'.
So what do you think? Does kid-shaming your child on social media verge on bullying? Or do you think it’s just a bit of fun? Comments please!
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