'Shameful': Woman Asking Burns Victim To Cover Up on Beach Sparks Fury

A woman has drawn an angry response online after a dad took to social media to detail how she confronted his badly scarred teenage son on a beach and asked him to cover up.

Body shaming is often assumed to encompass the act of shaming an individual over their weight but, in truth, it can take on multiple forms of cruelty, conscious or otherwise, related to things like height, hair color or other physical traits.

And while a larger proportion of women are affected, a significant number of men still suffer from low confidence when it comes to their physical appearance.

In fact, a University of California study involving over 52,000 heterosexual adults aged 18 to 65 found that as many as 11 percent of the men polled in the research rated their body as unattractive.

With many of the foundation blocks of an individual's sense of confidence and self-worth developed in their formative years, it's crucial for parents to play a role in building their children up in whatever way they can—including their self-image.

For one dad posting to Reddit, that role came to the fore during an unpleasant encounter with a woman who confronted him and his son during a recent trip to the beach.

Thankfully, the man discovered his son was more than capable of standing up for himself, though the woman's actions nevertheless drew a furious response online.

Writing under the handle neededtosay-, in a post that has been upvoted over 11,000 times, the 37-year-old father explained that his 17-year-old son was in a car accident several years ago that left him with "serious burns all over his shoulder and torso."

"He's had skin graft surgeries on more affected areas," he explained. "His scars are still pretty visible so that's something he's been very self conscious about. It took him lots of time in therapy until he was able to even look at himself in the mirror."

Thankfully, over time, his son has become "more comfortable" with his appearance and "can look at himself again." Eager to celebrate his son's newfound confidence, he decided to take him out to the beach for the day.

Though the dad acknowledged his son experienced some "staring and pointing" from other kids, they were able to brush it off. However, one woman took things further, approaching the father and son to ask "in a fake sweet voice" if he would "mind putting his shirt back on."

She insisted it was not her who had "a problem with it" but rather her "family" and she felt that ultimately his scars were "too visible to ignore." The woman went on to claim that "some of the kids are a little freaked out by it."

According to the dad, his son stood up to the woman, telling her that her kids "can look somewhere else" if they don't like his scars. Despite this, the woman became "irritated" and turned to the dad expecting him to "do something" about it.

"I pretty much said the same thing," he wrote. "If the kids are so freaked out about it maybe now is a good time to show them not every body is the same and it's nothing to be scared of."

Even so, she "would not let it go," forcing the dad to give her a piece of his mind.

"I told her it's people like her that made it so hard for him to be comfortable in his own body so why doesn't she shut the f*** up and get out of my face, if it bothers her so much," he said.

The woman branded him "disrespectful" and eventually left with her family. While the man admitted he may have crossed a line by "cussing" at her, his son appreciated his comments.

Social media, meanwhile, sided firmly with the father and son, with many taking to the comments section to condemn the woman's actions.

LetThemEatHay felt the woman should have just explained to her kids "that everyone is different, and there's nothing to be scared or ashamed of." PurpleMP12 agreed, writing: "If he [the son] wants to show his scars, he should feel free to do so."

LowImagination3028 commented: "Telling someone to cover their body because it bothers YOU sends the message that there's something repulsive about it," while spindacinda slammed her "shameful and gross" treatment of the man's son.

FoolMe1nceShameOnU added that the woman needed to understand that the boy was a "person with feelings," adding that she needs to "understand that it is not for her to decide how other people are allowed to exist in this world."

More-Pizza-1916, meanwhile, was full of praise for the teenager's response.

"I am so glad that your son felt comfortable enough to have a day in the water, but I am furious that because of that woman, his self-confidence may have taken a hit," they wrote. "Well done to him for standing up for himself though. He is so strong."

Newsweek has contacted neededtosay- for comment.