An influencer is defending herself after getting ripped to shreds online, all because she let her 14-year-old daughter travel alone to attend a concert!
On August 27, Kat Clark posted a video to TikTok explaining that her teenager, Deja, wanted to leave their family vacation in San Diego early so she could fly to Dallas to see a show with her friends. Like any parent, the content creator was conflicted over whether to allow the teen to travel solo. She said in the clip:
“Honestly, I don’t know if I made the right decision. At first, I was like ‘girl no way, we are on a family holiday and Dallas is a three hour flight away.’ But if you know anything about Deja, she would not shut up about it. She was like ‘mom, please, I can fly by myself. I promise I’ll text you the whole time.’ She even started negotiating with me.”
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Kat wanted to say no, but she ultimately gave in because she knew “how much her friends mean to” Deja. Watch the video (below):
@katclark Day 2 San Diego #family #vlog
♬ original sound – Kat Clark
We’re all for having fun and hanging out with friends! Deja should! But traveling solo to do so as a young teen? That raises some concerns for many, naturally! And they took to the comments to express their worries over Kat prioritizing the teen’s happiness over safety! People went off, saying:
“sometimes you need to say no”
“yall are too trusting of america”
“hell no out in the world ALONE at 14???? no way, especially not America. there are horrible people out there.”
“Do you know what matters more than your kids happiness?? Their safety.”
“she’s still a child so yes be the adult and make her stay”
“i know you like to be friends with your kids…but sometimes you have to say no”
“isn’t she like 14…. i would’ve said no and not because i don’t think she can’t handle herself but i simply don’t trust people around a solo 14 year old girl”
“It’s not even just the solo flight… she’s going to a concert in another state in another country at 14”
“I’m sorry what what the hellyyyy”
“I’m less worried about the flight and more worried about a 14 year old at a concert with friends.”
“i’m only a little older than deja but even i would say no idk WHAT kind of parent would say yes but definitely not mine, and not even in a malicious way purely because of safety as well as the fact that yall are already on a FAMILY vacation”
But others defended Kat, pointing out that most major airlines have an unaccompanied minor service, where they are supervised and escorted around the airport as well as receive early boarding access to meet the flight attendants and get situated:
“people forget airlines have systems set in place for unaccompanied minors, kids start flying alone by themselves at like 5-6 years old for family matters. 14 is fine she’s only on the flight alone then someone is at the gate to pickup.”
“i think she knows her daughter will be fine cuz if she had an inkling that she wasn’t she wouldn’t let her go yes she is 14 but she knows her daughter”
“When a minor is flying someone helps them get around as in a trusted employee and stays with them as they travel so I believe Deja is safe and Kat is letting her experience life!!”
“YALL OVER EXAGGERATING SO BAD… i flew by myself at the age of 9 all airlines come with unaccompanied child service so they still have to look after the child while the child is flying!”
This is exactly what Kat did! In a follow-up video, the social media personality revealed she got the unaccompanied minor service at the airport. Her husband also took Deja to the gate, so the 14-year-old was never alone. When Deja landed in Dallas, the friend’s mom picked her up and was required to show airport officials her ID before she could even take her. All that sounds great! The influencer clapped back at those claiming she was pulling such an “unsafe” move, saying:
“Teenagers need to learn to do things themselves, otherwise, we’ll be raising a whole bunch of annoying adults.”
@katclark My daughters safety & happiness is my number 1 priority #vlog
♬ original sound – Kat Clark
Despite doing all that, social media users continued to criticize her parenting! They slammed her for announcing online that her child was traveling alone, which we can agree is a valid argument! It probably wasn’t the best decision, but she also could’ve posted the videos after Deja’s solo trip! We hope that was the case! But we don’t know! Meanwhile, others still thought it was unsafe and irresponsible to not only let her travel alone but also just to attend a concert out of state.
Now, Kat is further defending her actions! She took to TikTok again on Sunday and clapped back at the critics, saying:
“So a lot of people have made it clear that they don’t like my style of parenting. If you guys only knew what I did at 14, 15, 16 — I mean, I was pregnant at 16. I’m just glad that TikTok didn’t exist back then because I would be canceled in five seconds.”
The influencer explained she had “really strict parents,” and the “last thing” she ever wanted to do was to tell them how she felt about their parenting because it would “turn into a lecture.” So, she acted out a lot:
“When I was a teen, I ran away from home, several times. And my parents had no idea where I was.”
However, things are different with Deja. Kat pointed out that when her kid “went away,” she “knew where she was all the time” and “had contact details” for the other parents. While the mom is “more open,” she insisted Deja has rules she must follow, adding:
“Having a child that feels comfortable enough to ask me to want to go instead of hiding things from me? That’s the kind of relationship I want with my kid.”
As long as Deja was safe and comfortable the entire time, that is all that matters! Watch her clap back video (below):
@katclark Replying to @meganlinds16 teenage me taught me a lot about the type of parent I wanted to be ❤️ #family #parenting
♬ original sound – Kat Clark
What do you think, Perezcious readers? Would you let your teen travel alone to a concert? Sound OFF with your thoughts on all this in the comments!
[Image via Kat Clark/Instagram]
