Why I don't share many limb difference photos other than Jordan
Photography is my one of my favorite past times. After years of working in the broadcast television industry, I picked up a solid eye for images. I love taking pictures of the family, nature, our dog, sports... You name it. But the one thing I'm trying to be more careful about is sharing photos of children who don't live with me... Especially photos of limb different kids on social media.Why?There are many reasons. And it starts back when Jordan was a baby. I uploaded all my photos (and still do) to Flickr. All of my photos were public back in the day... Until creepy groups started "starring" pictures of Jordan that included her little arm. I suddenly discovered there is a collection of people who are obsessed with imagery of limb differences. And it made me very uncomfortable. Knowing this was happening, I still continued to grow Born Just Right because I knew I needed community that didn't exist where I live. Born Just Right allowed me to connect with people all over the United States and even around the world. I have always hesitated to share many photos of kids other than Jordan because I didn't want those images to go somewhere they shouldn't go. Why do I protect others kids while allowing my daughter to be out there? It's a decision our family made. We know if someone tries to use Jordan's photo somewhere it shouldn't be, we know many people who will call it out. We also know no one can pretend to be Jordan's parent in the limb difference world. She's known well enough that you can't pretend with her. (And yes, we've seen adults pretend to be a part of the limb difference parenting world so they could connect with more of our families.) Our family made a decision to throw ourselves into the public eye so the limb difference parenting world could grow, connect and learn from each other. Remember, nine years ago, there was nothing except my beloved Sammy's Friends group on Yahoo.The bigger our limb difference parenting communities grow, the more touchy I feel about resharing many photos on social media, especially Born Just Right's Facebook page without the express permission of the parents. I haven't been perfect with this process. The older I get and the more involved I am in the online world and social media, the more sensitive I feel. I'm curious how you feel. I love celebrating all of our kids. I love seeing pictures of your kids and even better, I love meeting you all in person. But I hesitate sharing many images on the Born Just Right Facebook page. Should I relax? Should I be more strict about what I share? I'd love to hear your thoughts.