The last few days have been chaotic for all Americans. The inauguration brought out the best and the worst of many of us. Our social media feeds have been littered with political opinions, and everyone has something to say about the current state of our world. There are a lot of problems that we as a nation our facing, and whether or not Trump is the president that will solve these problems is irrelevant at this moment. What is relevant, however, is the problem that many Americans seem to have with his 10-year-old son, Barron.
Barron, along with his older siblings, have been thrown into the dog fight that I call the popular media. While they will come out alive, they will also come out damaged by the words of hateful individuals. Barron, at the age of 10, has already become the target of many online attacks. The night his father was elected, Barron had to stand next to him in the wee hours of the morning while he delivered a speech. The child looked tired and disinterested in the events happening around him, although he was probably tired, just like any other 10-year-old child would be. People ruthlessly attacked young Barron after this. Even celebrities like Rosie O'Donnell took their jabs- O'Donnell took to twitter to express her thoughts, retweeting a video and captioning it "Barron Trump Autistic?" Although O'Donnell apologized to Trump's wife, Melania, and made her twitter private, the damage was still done.
The same online brutality occurred after the Inauguration. A writer from SNL took it upon herself to tweet that "Barron Trump will be the country's first homeschool shooter", although if that person did their research, they would know that Barron actually goes to school. Other tweets included "The expressions on Barron Trump's face are 100% Joffrey", "Barron Trump just wants to go home and play candy crush", "there is a rumor, that the little spawn of the devil, Barron Trump/Damien, is autistic. might explain Cheeto Ceasar's obsession with vac's", "Barron trump looks more of a freak than his dad, and that takes some doing", "#barrontrump looks like a future rapist", and "Barron Trump is wandering around the White House right now looking for stuff to burn". These tweets are not only inappropriate-- they are mean, hurtful, and downright disrespectful to a young boy who has done nothing to deserve them.
Barron Trump did not choose to be the son of the then president-elect, now president of the United States of America. He did not choose the hatred and the ridicule that came along with that title. He is just a young boy, a child, that should not be worrying about what people are saying about him on social media. He should not be worried about grown adults making up rumors and calling him names. Melania and Donald want stability for their young son, and that is obvious. The first lady and son are not even moving into the White House until Barron is done with his school year. Melania has said countless times that before anything else, she is a mother. Barron's physical, mental, and spiritual well-being during the next four years is the one of first couple's main priorities, and this well-being is at risk with all of the social media slander surrounding him. Many popular figures choose to keep their children out of the spotlight and do it well. They know the damage that can be done to children that are thrown into the public eye. However, the Trump family does not have a choice. They are now the first family, and with that title the spotlight is inevitable. But does a 10 year old deserve to be slandered by the media, by adults? Absolutely not.
Parents, would you want someone to say horrible things like this to your children? Would you find it acceptable for your child, or a child you love, to be called a "freak", or a "future rapist"? Any parent that I know would fight for justice if that was said about their child. Barron may have a phone at the age of 10, like many children do. He may have access to the news, to the articles that are saying these things about him. Words hurt everyone, and this child is not immune to the hurt. No one is. Saying things about anyone as a grown adult is immature and not okay, but saying things about a child as an adult is a new kind of low.
You may not love Donald Trump or his family. However, that doesn't mean that Barron is deserving of the hate that so many are showing him. He is a young boy that deserves to grow up normally and be a kid, regardless of his title as the first son. If he was your child, wouldn't you want the same? He didn't choose this life, and he should be off-limits. Don't hate a child, love all children. Protect them as they are your own, regardless of who they are or where they come from. They are the future- we need to work together to make a kinder and brighter one, and that starts with protecting Young Barron.
