Stepfather Asks If He’s Wrong To Refuse To Tattoo Stepson's Name Alongside His Biological Children's
Is he alienating his stepson?
Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock A stepfather is receiving backlash after revealing that he didn't get his stepson's name tattooed on his arm, and only decided to get his biological children's names tattooed instead.
Posting to the subreddit 'AITA' (Am I The A-hole), the stepfather, 36, explained that he has two children from his previous marriage, a 9-year-old son and a 7-year-old daughter.
He's been with his current wife, 35, for the past four years, and they have a 1-year-old daughter together. His wife also has an 8-year-old son from her previous marriage, and all of their children live with them.
"My kids' mother has visitations one weekend a month, her son's dad isn't involved at all," he wrote in the Reddit post.
The man already has his two eldest children's names tattooed on his arm, and recently decided to add his youngest daughter's name as well.
His wife asked him if he would get his stepson's name tattooed, but he refused.
The man told his wife, "I have no intention of tattooing his name."
He told her that he only has the names of his children tattooed. His wife told him that if he didn't get his stepson's name, the young boy would feel excluded considering he's part of their family as well.
The man refused and "proceeded to only tattoo my daughter's name." His wife was extremely upset and called him "all sorts of things".
Under the man's Reddit post, most people agreed that he was wrong in the situation, heavily criticizing him for leaving his stepson out on purpose, while others pointed out that he's not the little boy's biological dad, and therefore isn't required to tattoo his name if he doesn't want to.
"[You're the a-hole]. You've been a father figure to him for half his life, poor boy will probably be shattered when he realizes you don't actually see him as yours," one user wrote.
A second user responded to the comment, seemingly defending the stepfather. "I think judgment is 100% dependant on how the child sees [the stepfather]. While there's a chance he sees [him] as a father, even without [a] bio dad involved there's also a [chance] he's just "mom's husband" and [the stepfather] tattooing his name would be overstepping."
A third user wrote: "He married his mom knowing he was part of the package. He's making him feel unwanted in his own home. Kids notice. These children are growing up as a family and need to nurture that since they need to be there for each other as adults. He should never have married her if he couldn't open his heart to include him as his child."
Nia Tipton is a writer living in Brooklyn. She covers pop culture, social justice issues, and trending topics. Keep up with her on Instagram and Twitter.