Mom explains why she puts her daughter on a leash in supermarkets, sparks debate

When you are out shopping, you always keep an eye out for your little one. You could lose track of them because they frequently wander and run wild in public places. This is why a mom chose to keep her daughter on a leash while shopping at the supermarket. As reported by the NY Post, Alexis, a TikTok user, posted a controversial video last month that garnered over 12 million views. In the now-viral video, the protective mama can be seen tying a pink leash around the wrist of her little girl, who is sitting in a shopping cart. “I’m tired of the world being this way, but I’m NEVER tired of protecting my girls,” Alexis captioned the video. “I’m okay looking like a crazy mom. As long as my babies are safe.”

Some commenters in the video accused Alexis of being over the top and living in fear. After her video went viral, she posted a follow-up video addressing all the speculation and claiming that leash training was particularly important for children with autism. "I used to work with children on the spectrum. I don’t share this about myself very often, but I was an ABA therapist," revealed the mom. "Something common with children who have autism is they do tend to elope. If you’re not familiar with what elopement is, that’s when a child tends to wander off or run away from the parent or the environment. Now, this can be very traumatic for both the child and the parent. I know that if I had this device when I was working with families, this would have made life so much safer.”

In an interview with Bored Panda, she notes that putting a leash on her daughter in a public space gives her a sense of security. “My youngest is still too young to express vocally how she feels, however, I don’t think she minds it. Every time I pull it out of my purse, she puts her wrist out,” she shared. “She also likes playing with it while shopping. My oldest doesn’t mind it at all.” Alexis added that they use the wrist leashes only when they are shopping or going for a walk. In her follow-up video, she also mentioned that this situation may or may not sit well with every parent. "It might not work for you. But it works for a lot of people, myself included. I was using it today and I thought of you guys. If this isn’t for you and your family – that’s fine. However, I strongly urge you to take a moment before judging others.”

She also shares horrifying instances of when people abduct children, adding that things like leashes can somewhat help prevent these cases from happening. “I was sexually abused at 8 years old, which forced me to grow up very quickly and become aware of the dangers all around me,” she shared. “I’m constantly learning and evolving, so my question for the people who choose to judge is: if this device could potentially save a child from being trafficked and abused, why does this upset you?" According to the Child Crime Prevention & Safety Center, a child goes missing or is kidnapped every 40 seconds in the United States.

“Approximately, 840,000 people are reported missing each year, and the F.B.I. estimates that between 85 and 90 percent of these are children,” the CCP&SC writes on their site. Many people in the comments showed full support for Alexis, adding that, they would do the same for their children. "I don't care what anyone says I’m doing this. Call me crazy but I will always be a protective mom first," said @cyber_bunnnie. "The search is “man takes toddler out of cart” so yeah always best to be safe than sorry," added @tiffanyvramirez. "I am tired of seeing kids being taken!!!!! Good job mama 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 at this point I would do whatever I could to prevent an abduction," wrote @lisa_marie__94.