Pink defends husband Carey Hart’s parenting skills—but she shouldn’t have to

In the photo, Hart and Jameson are sitting on the bike while it is still, but some Instagram users were still very critical of Hart’s decision to have Jameson up on the bike with him. Some suggested he was endangering his son, and others stated he was wearing the wrong kind of helmet.

After the controversy, Pink posted a photo of Jameson eating chocolate on her own Instagram, joking, “Chocolate is good for babies, right? Help me Instagram, we can’t possibly parent without you.”

The joke set some commenters off, reigniting the online debate about Hart’s parenting skills. “With your husband being in the spotlight so often with his complete lack of regard for proper care or concern at times with your kids, this comment isn’t funny, albeit Jameson is adorable, one Instagram user wrote. “Your husband, I’m sorry, lacks the responsibility your kids need in his care.”

Pink replied to the commenter, asking (fairly) how this person could feel like they could judge Hart as a father when they’d only seen him parenting through social media posts. “How often have you spent time with my husband?” Pink asked the commenter. “How often have you watched him parent?”

Through that comment, Pink reminded the world that what we see on social media is just one slice of our very complex and busy lives. It’s impossible to really know the thought and care each individual puts into the choices they make for their children.

We make choices for our kids every day and they’re going to be different from the choices of the parent next door or the next person in our Instagram feed. Our parenting choices are informed by our individual experiences, our beliefs, and everything else that makes us ourselves, everything that makes us unique.

No parent is perfect, but as parents we are perfectly positioned to choose what is appropriate for our individual children.

And we can also make the choice to respect those who parent differently than we do. No shaming necessary.