Woman Slammed for Selling Daughter's Concert Tickets to Buy Son Shoes

Commenters criticized a woman after she sold her teenage daughter's concert tickets so she could buy her son with cerebral palsy a new pair of shoes.

The anonymous teenager, known as u/Ticketsoldmcr1234, posted about the situation on Reddit's popular "Am I The A**hole" forum where it received nearly 16,500 upvotes and 1,800 comments since Saturday.

While there are various types of cerebral palsy, the group of permanent disorders all affects the development of one's movement or posture. It is estimated that over 17 million people around the world have cerebral palsy, according to the Cerebral Palsy Foundation.

In 2015, Nike released a pair of Lebron Soldier 8 Sneakers that provides ample ankle support after a young man with cerebral palsy, Matthew Walzer, wrote a viral letter to the shoe company.

In the letter, he said that he is self-sufficient but he still needed his parents to tie his shoes, which he said was embarrassing. After the letter went viral, Nike designer Tobie Hatfield designed several prototypes.

The shoes, which were made in a number of existing silhouettes, have a zipper that opens the back of the shoe, making it easier for one to slip their foot in and out. They also do not require tying.

In the post titled "AITA for moving out because my mom sold concert tickets to help my sibling?" the teenager, 17, said that she bought her and her boyfriend tickets to an upcoming My Chemical Romance concert using her own money.

She said she's religiously listened to the band since she was about 7 years old, and that the concert was "really important" to her since the show had already been rescheduled twice.

She added that she wanted to see them live because "alternative band members don't live so long, one may be dead before the next opportunity rolls around."

The teen said her brother Jack, 8, has cerebral palsy so he is required to wear ankle and foot orthoses (AFO) splints. Since his splints are bulky, they require certain types of shoes.

She said that the only type of shoes that Jack likes are "quite expensive" and that their mom is "a bit broke" because she just got back from vacation and also bought tickets to an Ed Sheeran concert.

"I assumed she'd sell her own tickets when she was talking about selling tickets," the post read. "I was very wrong, she sold mine. For like double the price I paid as well."

She added that the show was sold out and she didn't know if she would ever have another opportunity to see them live.

"I packed my s**t last night, and went to my boyfriends, who's [sic] parents are more than okay with it," the post read. "My mom thinks I'm being beyond unreasonable for leaving, that I am overreacting, that I'm making her look like a bad mother, etc etc, she even got my older sister to ring me and berate me down the phone."

She said that even though she thought she made the right decision in the beginning, she is starting to feel like "the a**hole."

More than 1,800 users commented on the post, many criticizing the teen's mother for selling tickets that never belonged to her in the first place.

"NTA—have you asked your mum why she didn't sell her tickets?" one user commented, receiving more than 20,000 upvotes. "I'd demand the money from her if you paid with your own money."

"She's a thief. Since you can't trust her, you were right to move out," another user commented.

"She's not a bad mom for taking care of the 8yo I agree, but I heavily agree that her priorities are wrong if she can afford a holiday but has to scalp her daughters tickets to pay for her other child," another wrote.

One user suggested the teen report the tickets stolen so she can be issued new ones and have the venue invalidate the original tickets.

"Then, when the people who bought yours are stopped at the door, they will turn around and sue your mom. You get to go to your concert, and your mom has to face the consequences of her actions," the user wrote.

Newsweek reached out to u/Ticketsoldmcr1234 for comment.

In another viral post from "Am I The A**hole," a father was slammed after he returned his daughter's birthday gift in order to get money for "something useful."

Another father was called "selfish" by users for taking a long work call during a family trip because he was upset that they went to the beach without him.

One mother was also criticized after asking for some of her child's inheritance because she felt that she didn't get enough in the divorce settlement.