It's no secret that moms get shamed for practically every parenting decision they make, and that might be especially true for Millennial moms. From what they wear to how they style their hair to how they're ending generational cycles and "disrespecting" their parents' parenting choices, Millennial moms can't seem to catch a break.
But now, it seems even public libraries might not be a totally safe space for them!
While taking her young children to "baby story time" at her local library, mom and TikToker Hilary Flips (@calmlychaoticmom) was having a hard time getting her children to sit still during the story time.
So when a librarian approached her after the story was over, Flips was sure she knew what this was about.
"So, I'm chasing my kids around, they're acting wild, and I always get a little stressed out that they're...they don't sit during story time."
"So after story time, this librarian comes up to me, and she goes, 'Are you a mom or a babysitter?'"
"And I thought, 'Oh my gosh, she thinks I'm young,' so I go, 'Oh, I'm a mom, not the babysitter.'"
"So she goes, 'You should know better,' in like this judgy, tsk, tsk kind of tone, and so I immediately start apologizing for my girls' behavior. You know, 'I'm so sorry, you know it's really hard for them to sit still like we're working on it. Like that's kind of why we come here,' and you know, whatever.'"
Then the librarian's real reason for approaching her came out.
"And she goes, 'No, your outfit.'"
"And I'm thinking, 'Oh my gosh, what, did I like not button my sweater up? Like what's happening?'"
"And she just like motions to it and I realize it's because it's a little bit cropped."
"When I carry my giant one-year-old, it raises up and shows maybe like one inch of my mommy belly with its cute little stretched-out belly button."
But the mom was stunned, feeling her outfit was perfectly acceptable.
"So this is what I wore, a little cropped sweater situation, it's from like the teenager section at Target. It's that weird Wild Fable brand. Probably not age appropriate, whatever."
"These jeans, they're Topshop mom jeans, a thousand years old, and they're literally called like the mom jean."
"This is what I wore. And apparently, apparently that's inappropriate to show any midriff when you're like edging into 40, and newsflash, I guess, I disagree."
In the caption to the video, Flips wrote:
"Pardon me while I continue to wear cropped tops with high-waisted pants until I’m a grandmother. Might even throw my bellybutton ring back in for extra flair."
You can watch the video here:
Some fellow TikTokers were shocked that the librarian even said anything to her.
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
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@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
Fellow librarians reassured the TikToker that she had nothing to be worried about.
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
Others joked about what the mom should do the next time she visited the library.
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
@calmlychaoticmom/TikTok
Fellow TikTokers couldn't help but shake their heads at how this mom was treated.
While she was just trying to encourage her toddlers' love of books and immerse her children in the wonderful world of the public library community, she was shamed for wearing a top that was shorter than the librarian deemed appropriate.
It seems that this librarian needs to revisit why she became a librarian in the first place: likely because she loves books and believes in education, and hopes to give others access to the same.