Update My toddler keeps going viral on TikTok. As a gender-fluid parent, it hasn’t always been an easy experience.

speciesrights.org – This article is based on an interview with Charlie Carter and has been edited for length and clarity.

Although I’ve been creating content on Instagram since I was 14, I was initially hesitant to post on TikTok because it had little popularity in the early stages.

But in 2019, while working full time as a debt collector, I started posting on the platform. My videos usually featured a transition from male to female, allowing me to showcase my quirky artistry through makeup and fashion. It also created a space for me to explore the fluidity of my sexuality at a time when I was struggling with feelings of dissatisfaction about my body and identity.

I posted a 15 second video titled “Broto Beauty” in April 2020. In the first half, you will be dressed in traditional “male” clothes and transform yourself into a woman with hair, makeup and clothes in the middle of the jump. It quickly became viral and gained over 360,000 views.

I received a lot of comments from viewers that I guess there were two different people in the video and I couldn’t believe both versions were me. I think society is very accustomed to labels and gender binaries. Therefore, if someone does not follow these rules, it can be difficult for some people to understand.

Since then, I’ve posted about my life as a gender-neutral parent and introduced my young daughter in some of the videos that resonate with viewers. I grew my platform to more than 180k followers and my videos got nearly 4 million likes. While I am pleased to be able to provide more queer representation, the journey hasn’t always been easy.

At first, I wasn’t sure about posting about my one-year-old daughter, Mila, because I was concerned about her privacy and security. But being a father is an essential part of my life and I always aim to be authentic as a content creator. I decided it was important to be open about my experience of becoming a parent as a gender flexible person. In February 2021, she posted the first video with her dancing to Carrie Underwood’s “Church Bells”, then posted a video in high heels pushing her stroller and writing “We are the future.”

However, the video that actually became a hot topic was her ‘Get Ready With Me On Father’s Day’ video, showing her taking care of her child while grooming her makeup and hair. I noticed the video was playing when my phone went into odrive mode with constant notifications for comments and likes. It was completely surreal. As a father, not gender, it was just an ordinary morning broadcast, but it seemed that many viewers were surprised, surprised, and perplexed by the appearance.

The video received 9.2 million views and 1.6 million likes. At first the interest seemed like a surge in serotonin levels, but the influx of new followers, messages, comments and likes was also overwhelming.

Some comments expressed “concern” that I “mistook” Mila for my feminine presentation, but many came to my defense by expressing how much Mila should be treated as a kind parent. Some added that they are excited to see the results of a future generation that will accept so much.

For me, the answer reaffirmed the importance of educating people about the fluidity of sexuality and sexuality while challenging the traditional parenting archetype. After becoming a father, that became very important to me. I want to show people that parenting is not limited to straight people. It is for everyone. We are also parents and active members of society.