Kapuso actress Jennylyn Mercado on National Heroes’ Day lauded single mothers who had to raise their children alone after a faceless social media user commented that they were only women who got impregnated.
“Respeto naman sa mga babaeng inanakan lang!” the online user wrote, adding a series of “face with hand over mouth” emojis.
Mercado didn’t take this tweet well and took a screenshot of the comment as an opportunity to boost single moms’ morale, being one herself.
“To all the single moms out there, never let comments like this get to you. Having a kid early doesn’t make you less of a woman. In fact, it’s the opposite. Being a single parent made us stronger than ever. Mahirap maging nanay at tatay ng ating (mga) anak pero kinakaya natin,” she wrote in response to the comment.
“Kaya always hold your head up high. We are more powerful than they think we are. And for those people na minamaliit pa rin kami hanggang ngayon, I feel so sorry for you. Lahat ng mga kritisismo sa pagkatao namin, nasabi na samin, and yet here we are. Raising our kid(s) the best we can. Whatever you say, you can and will never bring a strong woman down,” Mercado added.
Her initial post has earned 1,300 retweets and 15,200 likes on the microblogging platform as of this writing.
It has also been quote-retweeted more than 300 times by Filipinos who supported the actress’ views on the matter.
Fellow Kapuso actress Chynna Ortaleza similarly praised her for telling off the social media user.
“Go Jen! Hindi madali maging single parent at lalong hindi madali na maging maayos sa mga tao na ang may hurt or misunderstanding before. E ikaw… kinaya mo lahat ‘yan. So APIR!” she tweeted.
Gabriela, a progressive party-list advocating for women’s rights, likewise supported Mercado’s comments and urged Filipinos to recognize single mothers on National Heroes’ Day, the day that the actress incidentally posted her thoughts on the matter.
“Solo parents should in no way be at the receiving end of these kinds of insults. Raising a child alone is a difficult feat, more so amid crisis. So as we celebrate Nat’l Heroes Day, let us recognize the bravery of solo parents who take on many roles to provide for their families,” the party said as it retweeted Mercado’s post.
Mercado shared her post incidentally on the day the country had commemorated the bravery of Filipinos who fought for independence such as Andres Bonifacio, Emilio Jacinto, and Jose Rizal, among others.
The 33-year-old actress is a single mother to Alex Jazz, her 12-year-old son with former partner Patrick Garcia.
She previously admitted that while it was challenging to raise a child on her own, Alex became her “number one priority” as soon as she gave birth to him years ago.
“It’s hard because I don’t have anybody to help me raise him. But, if you love your kid, you’ll make time for him. Lagi kang gagawa ng paraan to make everything work. When I gave birth to him, he became my No. 1 priority,” she told a local news outlet in April 2018.
“So, ang situation ko, masarap na mahirap. Mahirap because of the obvious difficulties. At the same time, masarap because it’s a good feeling to see him growing up as a kind, smart and courteous boy. It’s a sign that you’re doing something right,” Mercado added. (J. Malasig, Interaskyon)
