Managing teenagers and social media could be a tricky task for any parent. Recently actress Gabrielle Union opened up about some of the disturbing messages she and her husband, former NBA star Dwyane Wade have found on their children’s phones.
During her appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show” on Wednesday, March 23, Wednesday, the actress revealed how the couple has managed the online use of their children.
When it comes to the Salt Lake City Star player, Union said the two were stunned to see messages eerily similar in context to HBO’s hit series “Euphoria,” which follows a group of high school students as they battle drug addiction, sex, and violence.
“When [Zaire] turned 16, all he wanted was his own Instagram. We set it up through my husband’s account so we could see his DMs. We were all up and through his DMs,” the actress shared. “And let me tell you, as much as folks were like, ‘“Euphoria”’s not realistic,’ let me you, that show “Euphoria” was all up and through my child’s comments. Pretty accurate for teens.”
The “Cheaper by the Dozen” star said unabashedly, “Pretty accurate for teens. Scary, Yes, I know, but if you can get into those DMS, try.”
Elsewhere she opened up about her and the former NBA player’s parenting style, noting that they “don’t do one size fits all parenting” when it comes to their household. “With Zaya, she can only see comments from people that she follows. So unless she follows you, you cannot leave a comment,” the 49-year-old continued.
“And for Kaavia, obviously, she can’t read. And for us with Kaav, we felt it as important for us to show a free Black girl in all of her moods, whether he hair is done, not done, you know, whether she’s got the cutest outfit on or she’s still in pajamas on a Saturday evening. We wanted people to see what free Black girlhood looks like,” she added.
Union also reflected on her fertility journey when setting up rules for their daughter. “We made people such a part of our heartbreak with our fertility journey that when Kaav arrived, there was so much joy, and she represents so much positivity and hope to so many people. We wanted people to see what her freedom looked like.”
