After Finding Out Her Daughter Was Bullying A Classmate, A Kind Mom Forces The Girl To ‘Humble Herself’ And Make It Right
This mother’s story is about so much more than a “forced apology.”
Rido / CanvaPro Amidst growing rates of bullying in schools — with nearly 14% of public schools reporting it as a major problem — it’s important to spread awareness on how to create targeted solutions. So, how do we teach students how to be better and prepare them to be compassionate above all else?
Dominique Mackey shared her response to learning her daughter was bullying another student at school and gave other parents a lesson on teaching through empathy rather than anger.
After learning her young daughter bullied a classmate for her hair, Mackey ‘forced’ her to ‘humble herself’ and make things right.
“Your child decided to be a follower and bully another kid today, knowing you hate bullies,” Mackey wrote in the overlay text to her video. “This is how we apologize in our household.”
Walking through the store with her young daughter, Mackey vulnerably shared the way in which she “forced” her daughter to apologize for bullying another student for their hair in an empathetic way that provided space for her to grow from her mistakes.
“You are to always be kind to everyone because how you treat someone can impact their mental health” she captioned the TikTok. “Not only that but everything you have can be taken away just as fast as you received it! Humble yourself!”
Mackey and her daughter bought the young girl presents, flowers, and a card as a gesture of apology.
The present this mom and her daughter crafted was nothing short of beautiful, complete with face masks, flowers, a notebook, and candy. However, the most meaningful part of the gift was the card Mackey's daughter wrote to the bullied girl.
Photo: Joshua Resnick / Canva Pro
“I’m sorry for being mean to you and talking about your hair,” the daughter wrote. “You are a wonderful friend to me so I apologize for that.”
Kids can be ruthless with each other regardless of how they behave at home. Sometimes children who are kind can at times be cruel all in an effort to fit in. It's a harsh reality that parents learn, but as this mom proved, it can be a teachable moment.
After having her daughter deliver the gifts, Mackey made a special call to her mother and offered her daughter a pre-paid hair appointment as another apology.
After she recorded an update to her original post which has since been deleted, showing her daughter hand-delivering the present to this young girl, the mother continued the story with a heartfelt call to her mother.
“I also called her mother,” she wrote, “and asked if she would allow me to give her daughter my daughter’s hair appointment that I already paid for in advance.”
Not only was the mother on the other end of the phone touched, but commenters were as well. “This actually saves kids’ lives,” one wrote. “Taking the time to acknowledge when our kids do wrong and making them take accountability for it. You are an incredible mom.”
Mackey received such incredible feedback she posted a thank you to her followers for their support on her parenting journey.
"I don’t tolerate bullying," Mackey said on the call. “This little girl was so happy and grateful, and her mom was as well,” Mackey wrote in her second video. “My daughter understands her wrongdoing and promised to never hurt anyone else again.”
Hair-focused bullying is a bigger problem than many people realize.
Whether it’s an adult at their job or a young girl in a classroom, hair-focused bullying is a common problem that cannot be ignored. “Approximately 22% of Black 10-year-olds and 32% of 14-year-olds reported experiencing hair-related teasing of some kind,” a 2022 study revealed.
Being a Black mother, Mackey knew all too well the repercussions of this kind of bullying and how traumatic it could be for young girls.
Her daughter’s apology, along with her gesture of a paid hair appointment, had everything and nothing to do with this young girl’s hair. It was also, however, about confidence, kindness, compassion, and community.
In a world that constantly promotes an unrealistic beauty standard for young girls of all backgrounds, Mackey taught her daughter and her bullied schoolmate an important lesson about self-love.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a news and entertainment writer at YourTango focusing on pop culture analysis and human interest stories.