Being a parent is not easy. Raising children is hard work and it takes a lot of effort, which is why parents often seek help in online groups.
However, with the political climate, everyone is trying to address the difficult issues of diversity and racism. There is a good reason for people to discuss systematic change, and these conversations have impacted everyone all around the world, including parents.
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All over social media, people have been discussing race, politics, and systemic change.
After the death of George Floyd, people everywhere have had something to say. Many people online are protesting for change and supporting the Black Lives Matter movement. Many are advocating for police reforms, too.
As the Black Lives Matter movement gathers strength, there are some who support the police departments more than anything else.
There are also those on social media who are firm supporters of the police, especially those who have members of their families who work in the police force.
It’s no secret that many people are getting in heated debates online over everything going on in the world.
Many people all over the web are disagreeing and arguing back and forth over these issues — even friends and family. Facebook has definitely seen a few debates come out of these discussions.
Now, many mommy groups on Facebook are even seeing some users arguing back and forth.
One particular group, UES Mommas, has seen a dramatic change over conversations about race that have taken place in the group. Many moms are reportedly unhappy with the group and its admins over how the situation was handled.
The group has over 40,000 members and has had some unrest in the past, too over issues of diversity.
According to The New York Post , the private Facebook group was once “temporarily closed” because there were racially insensitive comments made about a children’s book called P is for Palestine .
This time, the discussion stemmed from the George Floyd protests.
According to group users, racial discussions were often banned and deleted from the group’s page.
One mom said:
“You can’t decide that you’ve got a mom’s group and that the topic of race and protests is off-limits. It’s all interwoven with parenting. It’s kind of an unrealistic position to have right now.”
Many moms suggested that the group’s administrator add another admin to the page — one who is a person of color.
However, the group’s admin said she had no intention of adding another admin to the group at this time. Posted on May 30th, one of the admins, Lindsey Plotnick Berger, wrote:
“I have no intention of adding admins right now. I have worked my ass off to attempt to lead this group in a way that accounts for what its members want.”
It all blew up when one mom, Addy Spriggle, a lawyer from the Upper East Side, pushed for more inclusive admin members.
Berger then texted Spriggle, saying that:
“The leadership of the group is what it is and if anyone is unhappy in the group for any reason whatsoever that person is under no obligation to stay in the group.”
The texts were later posted to the group, and many were not happy with the outcome.
Some members alleged that Berger was stereotyping women of color and following the “angry black woman narrative.” Berger later apologized saying:
“I apologize if my frustration got the better of me and led to poor language choice.”
However, the moms who originally requested the changes were reportedly “booted” from the group and removed.
The reason? Berger said:
“…some members were removed for violating the rules, including take screenshots of conversations.”
As of now, Berger has added two new admins to the group —one Black woman and one Asian woman. In addition, she said she would be stepping down as the group’s administrator for the time being.
h/t: The New York Post
