What to Know
I have a 12-year-old son, and I know that one of my biggest jobs raising him is to make sure he understands boundaries. Especially when it comes to how he deals with women. He is allowed to have opinions, but he should never demand that a woman change herself to make him more comfortable. It’s an important conversation that moms of sons need to be having, especially as they move into the tween and teen years. Whitney Robertson, a mom on TikTok, unexpectedly had to have this conversation with her tween, and she shared it for millions to see.
The video has been viewed more than three million times.
@mrsrobertson20 ♬ original sound – Whitney Robertson
In the video, Robertson and her son Mattox are sitting in her car in some sort of parking lot while she addresses the camera.
“I have been told today that I need to wear a better bra and shirts that are not fitted,” she said.
She explained that she went to her son’s awards ceremony at school, and allegedly, he was not pleased with what she chose to wear.
“It wasn’t ‘thank you for coming and supporting me,’ it was ‘what do you have on? You need to change,’” she said, repeating what her son had told her. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with what I’ve got on,” she continued.
Mattox then jumped in, telling her “I could literally see my friends looking at your tits cuz they’re sticking out like a sore thumb.”
It’s more than clear that Robertson is busty. However, even though her shirt is fitted, it’s a crew neck, which means there is no cleavage showing.
Mattox continued to admonish his mother, telling her that her breasts were “sticking out,” while sounding very frustrated.
People immediately defended the mom’s right to wear what she chooses.
@mrsrobertson20 ♬ original sound – Whitney Robertson
“There is nothing wrong with what you’re wearing and this would be a perfect time to have a conversation about respecting women regardless of what they are wearing or what their body shape is, so if friends are making comments about your mom then they aren’t being respectful,” one person suggested.
“Mom can wear what she wants. Her behavior is not the problem. It’s the friends’ behavior. Boys don’t need to comment on their friends’ mothers,” another person wrote.
“His friends will notice you even in an oversized t-shirt because you are beautiful. It’s hard being the ‘hot mom,’” another comment read.
Others suggested that he might be putting up boundaries, which is a different conversation.
“Mom of 2 boys here: He doesn’t like that his friends are noticing,” one person wrote.
“This! A friend/classmate noticed his mom and it made him uncomfortable. It’s a good time to talk about telling friends don’t talk about my mom like that. It’s rude to talk about any woman like that,” someone replied.
“Boys need to be taught to confront and correct the behaviour of their friends so that as men they will confront men that are showing disrespect to women,” another person replied.
“He needs to learn to regulate his feelings. There is nothing wrong with what she has on. Child shouldn’t speak to their mother that way,” someone else wrote.
Some people agreed that she needed to dress differently around her son and his friends.
“SOMETIMES WE NEED TO LISTEN TO OUR CHILDREN they are us in lil people an if he’s embarrassed take his feelings and consideration and listen to him,” one person wrote.
“I would listen to him, not because you have to but because it is making him uncomfortable,” someone else wrote.
“Mom if he is telling it is saying something. Your child is pointing it out it is making him uncomfortable. Respect him,” another commenter suggested.
“He is uncomfortable and you need to care. This is soooo weird. This is so sad for him.”
This wasn’t the end of the conversation.
@mrsrobertson20 ♬ original sound – Whitney Robertson
Robertson posted a follow-up video with 12-year-old Mattox, and it was clear that they’d had a talk about respecting women’s bodies, and knowing when and how to create boundaries around comfort.
“I will never raise a boy that thinks he has the right to tell a woman how to dress,” she said defiantly.
“What I said, I should have said a different way,” Mattox said. “What I meant was that the way she dressed, there’s weird people. But I should be targeting the weird people instead of how she dresses. So I had that wrong.”
One person commented, “Mannnn the boy mommas that get it, get it! Boys say how they feel when we raised them right. It might not always be said right but they love us bad! I can tell he loves you!”
READ NEXT: Teen’s TikTok Post Shows Heartbreaking POV of Kids Growing Up With Domestic Violence
