A mother-of-two has faced a torrent of online criticism after posting a video that appeared to show her leaving her infant son unattended on a beach while she went for a swim in the ocean.
The Viral Clip That Caused a Storm
Renee, a 28-year-old from Brisbane, Australia, participated in a popular online trend where individuals ask viewers to "keep an eye" on someone as they walk away. In the clip, filmed in January 2026, she is seen walking towards the sea from her sleeping 10-month-old baby, who was resting in the shade. Over the video, she wrote: "Can you guys watch my baby while I go for a swim? Thanksss."
The footage quickly went viral, amassing a staggering 4.6 million views on TikTok and thousands of angry comments from concerned users who branded the act "horrible" and dangerously irresponsible.
Context Behind the Controversial Footage
However, the situation was not as it initially appeared. Renee, a registered nurse, clarified that her child was never in any real danger. She explained that on a visit to the same beach the day before, she had connected with another parent and their family.
"I felt very comfortable leaving him there with not only [the other mum] watching him, but also me and my partner watching from the water," Renee stated. "In the video, we may look far away, however, it was only about 10 metres. He only stayed asleep for four minutes before waking up."
In the video's caption and subsequent comments, she added an edit to reassure viewers: "Ps. Not pictured is the beautiful mum sitting next to us who offered to watch him... you all can chill." She insisted there "was never any risk that anyone would kidnap" her son.
Fierce Online Backlash and Parenting Debate
Despite her explanations, the online reaction was overwhelmingly negative, sparking a fierce debate about risk assessment and modern parenting. Many TikTok users expressed their disbelief and fear.
Critical comments flooded in, including:
- "That’s horrible."
- "This has to be a joke right?"
- "With the way the world is going... I would’ve never let my child there."
- "I won't even leave my phone, WTF, a baby? Are you serious?"
Renee defended her actions, stating she is constantly risk-assessing as a mother of two. She attributed her different approach to it being her second child, saying, "I would have never done this with my first baby but second time around I’m doing things differently."
She expressed frustration at the response, noting, "Some people lack critical thinking; they watch a 20-second video and comment quite horrible things with no context, which is very strange to me." She maintained the video was posted as "a bit of light-hearted fun" and was not intended to cause upset.
