A mom who faced backlash for the way she hugged her 16-year-old son after his football game has shared a heartbreaking text message her son sent about his upbringing.
Last month, Amber Wright, a single mom from Utah, posted what she thought was no more than a sweet video of herself celebrating her son's football victory - a video that she ended up gaining a great deal of criticism for
In the clip, which has racked up over 9 million views, Amber and her teenage son, Brixton, share a moment of affection following his team's home game win.
However, the comments she received on the video were overwhelmingly negative, with some commenters calling into question the nature of their embrace.
One comment read: "It would’ve been cute if it was his girlfriend, but not a mother." Another commenter said: "I wonder how many of his friends are allowed to stay over. My son wouldn’t be allowed for sleepovers at their house."
A third critic penned: "I'm a single mom and very close to my sons. I hug them in public without hesitation - but straddling them in high heels would cross a line neither of us would be comfortable with. To each their own, but this appears to be an unusual relationship."
Amid the backlash, Amber has repeatedly defended herself against the claims made by people in her Instagram comments.
Brixton has also taken to the post to defend his mom, saying: "She’s never abused me, done anything sexual with me or my friends, or groomed me."
Earlier this month, Amber took to Instagram again to share a text message Brixton sent to an unspecified recipient, in which he revealed that his father, an alcoholic, had taken his own life last year.
He wrote in the message: "My mom is my hero. I was just giving her a hug after the game and I did pick her up. She did not jump on me. My mom's been the only person there for me my whole life.
"I grew up with an alcoholic dad who would just come and go when he wanted. He was great when he was sober but he wasn't, he was just so dark and different. He never really showed up to any of my games or anything like that. My mom's been to every single one since I've played."
"My dad ended up committing suicide last year and this year I changed my number to 44 because it was his death date (4/4/21). It was her first time seeing me wear it in person so obviously she was very emotional and so was I. All it was was a big hug from me to her."
An emotional Amber shared her response to her son's message in her caption, saying that he is in fact her hero.
She wrote: "I will take allllllllll the negativity in the world thrown my way and I will continue to hold my head high and raise this incredible young man to overcome any and all adversity."
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org
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