A woman known as @missmidwestern on TikTok tried to show people just how much the kindness of a stranger could impact you for the better, no matter your circumstances, but others on the app didn’t let her have the sweet moment she was hoping for.
Seeing such kind interactions take place amid the contentious social media landscape can definitely restore your faith in humanity. Part of the fun is seeing everyone band together in the comments section and knowing they feel exactly like you do. Unfortunately, this woman encountered shame instead of support in what was meant to be a feel-good video.
A homeless woman was simply sharing a sweet moment that boosted her mood, but others ruined it for her.
The woman explained in her video that she lives in her car and uses the showers at her local Planet Fitness whenever she can. On a bad day, another woman who had no idea what she was going through made a comment that she probably didn’t think much of, but it made all the difference.
“Little happy dance because another woman in the restroom went out of her way to compliment me saying she loved my lotion, and that she could smell it from over there,” she said. “It really [is] the little things.”
The video showed the homeless woman standing between a line of shower stalls and the sink and mirror while applying the lotion in question. It was just a few seconds long, and it was easy to tell that there was no one else nearby when she filmed it.
Still, people had a major issue with her posting a video filmed in a public restroom.
One person commented, “Let’s normalize NOT filming in bathrooms, regardless of whether you think [there] are other people in there or not.” Another noted, “It’s a felony to film in public bathrooms.”
Someone else shared similar thoughts, but did so in a much gentler way, earning a like from the creator. “Many people don’t know this but it’s illegal to film in public bathrooms,” they said. “Many people do it anyways. But just making you and anyone else aware of that. Also wish you the best and hope luck swings your way.”
Thankfully, multiple people left kind comments as well, with several saying they have been forced to do the same before, and others asking if there was any way they could help the woman.
Filming in a public bathroom is problematic, but was it necessary to be so harsh in the process?
Even if you’ve never had the experience of being filmed by an influencer in public before, you’ve certainly seen a video in which others were put in that position. Sparks Law Firm confirmed that it is generally legal to record people in public. “However, even in public, there are certain places with expected levels of privacy where recording is not allowed, such as bathrooms and dressing rooms,” the firm noted.
George Milton | Pexels
The law that applies to this situation specifically says that it’s illegal to record when “the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy.” So, the law does not actually state that you can’t film in a public restroom, but one would assume that’s a private place.
At the end of the day, this woman didn’t harm anyone, and you really have to wonder if there was even a need to call out her mistake at all when she clearly didn’t mean anything by it and wouldn’t have recorded it under different circumstances.
We can’t all coddle people, even when they’re going through a hard time. However, there is a difference between pointing out someone messed up and being downright rude. The third person who commented showed that it was possible to let the woman know about her error while still being kind. There was no need to ruin a perfectly nice moment by attacking her.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.
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