Folks on the internet just can't seem to leave Tori Spelling and her family alone.
Just a few months ago, the Beverly Hills, 90210 alum fell victim to mom-shaming after she posted photos of her children going back to school. Instead of well-wishes, people took to the comments to criticize the way her kids, Liam, 12, Stella, 11, Hattie, 7, and Finn, 6, appeared in the photo.
Some people called Spelling and her husband, Dean McDermott, "awful" for letting their kids look "disheveled." Others called the kids "fat" and "unfit."
Spelling eventually responded to the critics. She wrote: "For all the individuals on here that felt the need to #momshame and #kidshame me and my children I say, 'Shame on you!' I was raised to believe that if you can't say anything nice about someone then don't say anything at all. The judgment here should be on your manners. Empowerment goes both ways. Lift others up and you in turn lift yourself up."
Sadly, it seems like her words fell on deaf ears. In January, Spelling's children, including two-year-old Beau, were once again subjected to more body-shaming from total strangers.
This time, the criticism started when the actress posted a photo of the whole family at a screening of A Dog’s Way Home.
McDermott, understandably hurt by the comments, shared his feelings about the situation, calling out the bullies.
"I am absolutely horrified and disgusted by the comments being left about my children," the 52-year-old wrote. "Body shaming and bullying my children??!! What is wrong with you people??!!" "
He continued, "As far as saying my children are overweight, well that’s just mean and uncalled for,” he said. “They’re going through different growth phases, and even if our children are on the bigger side. Who cares. They’re happy and healthy and I’m sorry they don’t look like skinny supermodels. People come in all shapes and sizes. So who are you to judge."
Unfortunately, the negative reaction to the family photo has left a lasting impression on the children. According to McDermott, Liam took it the hardest.
"Liam picked it up, and that’s when I really went ballistic, because it’s like, you know, it’s gonna happen,” the father said on an episode of his podcast, "Daddy Issues." "He said, 'Dad, am I obese?’ I said, ‘Look buddy — there’s some sick people in the world … and they need to do stuff like this. They need to say bad things about people.'"
McDermott then explained to his son that the people who are taking the time to write something negative in the comments have nothing better to do with their lives.
"'Think about it, son. You have a busy life,’ ” he said. "'You have school, you got sports; do you think you have time to go on Instagram, scroll through the people that you’re following, and make a negative comment about somebody?’ I said, 'No, you don’t. You don’t, and if you did, you’d fill your time with something else. So think about how sick these people are that they have to do that.’"
It's reassuring to see that Liam and his siblings have supportive parents who will stand up for them no matter what. It's hard enough having to grow up while the whole world watches, and it's even more challenging when everyone has something to say. We hope Spelling and McDermott speaking about this issue will compel strangers on the internet to think twice before writing a mean comment about children.
