One Massachusetts dad named Aaron Gouveia is blowing up on Twitter after posting a viral rant in which he rails against the current culture of toxic masculinity and defends his five-year-old son’s right to paint his fingernails. Gouveia was inspired to go off when his son Sam came home from school crying after the other children made fun of him for having his nails painted.
The father of three noted that Sam is a real “boys boy,” as he’s “rough and tumble,” and loves dirt, but Gouveia also explained that he loves purses and to have his nails painted bright colors too. As he explained, in Sam’s mind, the nails just “look beautiful,” and as far as Gouveia is concerned, Sam should be able to be whoever he wants. But as his father, and most adults, know, not everyone is going to see it that way.
“When my wife picked him up from school he collapsed into her arms and cried uncontrollably,” Gouveia Tweeted. “He was devastated at how other kids turned on him, even his friends. He asked them to stop but that just made it worse. Only 1 kid stood up for him.”
But his classmates did have a problem. A big one. Sam was ridiculed for being a boy with nail polish. They called him names and told him to take it off. This lasted the entire day.
— Daddy Files (@DaddyFiles) October 23, 2018
The most devastating part was the fact that Sam had been wearing his nails like that long before kindergarten and had never been made fun of in that way before. That’s because before being made fun of at school, being different “never meant ‘bad.’” Gouveia didn’t waste any time putting other parents under the microscope for not teaching their kids to be more empathetic and accept superficial differences between people.
“I know these kids are only in kindergarten but this toxic masculinity bullshit is LEARNED. Learned most of the time from parents,” he wrote. “So parents, I hope you’re proud. I hope this is what you wanted. I hope you’re satisfied.”
I hope you sleep well tonight knowing order has been at least partially restored and gender norms solidified for one more little boy whose terrible infraction was having the audacity to like brightly painted fingernails.
— Daddy Files (@DaddyFiles) October 23, 2018
My wife and I spent five years successfully preaching tolerance, acceptance, and the importance of expression and your kids unraveled that in one school day. He now feels the shame you desperately want to associate with being different.
— Daddy Files (@DaddyFiles) October 23, 2018
Fortunately, now that his father’s tweetstorm has gone viral, Sam gets to see that not everyone is so intolerant. After the posts blem up, dozens of parents came out of the woodwork saying that their boys like getting their nails painted too.
For Sam and his Dad, from my daughter and I in NZ.
This is what we think of #ToxicMasculinity pic.twitter.com/LYi8viY9al
— Mike (@MiramarMike) October 23, 2018
My 6-yr-old joined me in a manicure this weekend & wanted red nails! His baseball teammates thought it was funny, but all was OK. I was nervous about school today, but he said he just showed off his nails & no one said anything! Hang in there, Sam! pic.twitter.com/3bwH6bSM8i
— Michele (@Grafxcowgirl) October 23, 2018
It sounds to me like you and Sam deserve pedicures my sons love them!! Please hug Sam for me. ???????? pic.twitter.com/ECaZf5ffag
— Ꮰɛɾɾí Ꭶωαղղ???? (@JerriSwann21) October 23, 2018
