You see a lot of different things on the New York City subway. On any given day your commute could involve people swinging around on the handrails, mothers and their children selling candy from a cart, casual passengers in seasonally inappropriate costumes, or drunk girls holding back their puke after a night out.
If you’re a New Yorker you’ve likely seen it all and have probably become completely unaffected by the oddities the New York City subway brings your day-to-day life.
When one TikToker experienced one of these oddities in real-time, they had the idea to record it. On this particular commute, they encountered a mother who was berating her child and a fellow New Yorker who just was not going to stand for it.
The woman stepped up and argued with this mother ridiculing her for the way that she talked to her daughter, especially in public, and advocating for the little girl’s needs and her physical, mental, and emotional well-being. She encouraged the mother to use the mistake to teach her daughter rather than immediately punish her.
Commenters praised the woman for getting involved when most people wouldn’t and making sure the little girl felt heard and understood by an adult when her mother had no interest. Many people noted that the girl on the subway would probably never forget what this kind stranger did for her by showing her what grace and love look like.
Although most people were very impressed and approving of the woman’s actions a couple of people were worried that the mom’s embarrassment in public would lead to worse punishments for the little girl at home. They encouraged the woman or any bystanders on the train to call CPS or local authorities to check on the safety of the little girl after she got home.
The woman who advocated for the child, Toya, ended up taking to TikTok as well to explain her perspective and what led her to speak up that day on her morning commute.
She said that she noticed the little girl had water all over her when the mom started yelling at her daughter telling her she was nasty and disgusting. Toya didn’t see what had happened beforehand but a commenter who was also on the train that day said that the girl had accidentally backwashed when drinking from the bottle which prompted the mom to hit her daughter in the head and splash water all over her.
Toya said that the entire 20 minutes they were on the train the mom was berating her daughter, telling her how much trouble she’s in when they get home and how disgusting she is. This wasn’t the only incident that Toya addressed that day on the train either.
A toddler fell as this was happening and began to cry. When the toddler’s mother tried to console her and it didn’t work, she decided to beat her child in the back of the head with a fist full of rings.
Toya said she addressed that incident, inadvertently making herself the advocate for all of the children on the subway that day. She doesn’t know what happened to the children after that subway ride but they will certainly never forget it and neither will she.
Here’s hoping that someone recorded these incidents, and got that footage into the right hands, and these children, thanks to Ms. Toya, can feel safe and empowered in their own homes.