The first week back to school can be an exciting and challenging time for families.
Part of that fun can be finding the perfect back-to-school wardrobe, but one mom’s alleged choice of a back-to-school look for her elementary-aged daughter left the Internet reeling.
A mom by the handle “De Arjanae” reportedly posted a picture of her four-year-old daughter all ready for her second day of school. The preschooler posed proudly, showing off her red-and-white themed outfit, complete with cherry hair accessories and pristine white shoes to match her white shirt and shorts.
She even held a bright red tiny purse to complete the outfit.
“All schools need a little cherry on top,” the post’s caption read.
What got people's attention, however, was the bright red corset the girl appeared to be wearing.
The corset looks like a separate piece of clothing the child is wearing over top of a white shirt, and double unfortunately, the shirt is longer, so the picture makes it unclear what the child is wearing for shorts.
The picture was reposted by another Instagram account called @lstpromotions, and the commenters were appalled at the little girl’s outfit.
“What is the Corset for and why does she have a PURSE instead of a BOOK BAG? I can’t stand y’all,” wrote one.
“Corsets and kids don’t go in the same sentence,” observed another.
Commenters pointed out besides the fact that a corset is a suggestive clothing choice for a child, the outfit is not appropriate for school either.
Many commenters were concerned that a mother would dress a child in a suggestive and, to some, overtly sexual piece of clothing.
“Her daughter can’t read, but mom has her dressed up like a pedophile’s wildest dreams. Priorities!” declared one Instagram user.
But still others noted that even taking away the suggestive nature of the clothing, a corset is restrictive and does not let a child move and play freely, as she should be able to at school.
“Children aren’t meant to be treated as pint-sized adults. Protect their innocence,” added one commenter.
“Let children be children!” begged another.
The original account shows many pictures of the girl dressed up for school.
What appears to be the actual account for “De,” which we did not link to out of respect for the little girl, who can’t consent to her pictures being shown on the Internet, shows many images of her dressed up for school.
If the account is real, the mother clearly puts a lot of time and effort into elaborate and customized clothing and outfits for her daughter.
“Another day, another week of still being a fly kid,” De wrote on one outfit post.
De also appeared to address the controversy herself, defending her actions and seemingly telling the Internet to mind its business.
In her original post, De also had many loyal commenters who claimed to know the little girl and her mom in real life and appeared to be jumping ot her and her daughter’s defense.
De limited the comment section on the post that now has 12,000 shares, but replied to her defenders with simple heart hands emojis.
She’s also continued her daily outfit posting, writing the day after the corset picture:
“One thing about mine SHE gone always SHINE bright. Day 3, go be a great kid, mommy got the rest 🖤 ”
