Dad Confesses To Secretly Feeding Dairy and Meat To Daughter’s ‘Malnourished’ Vegan Friend

The idea of being vegan has slowly started turning from being something fringe to something more widespread. All over the Internet, you will find people declaring the many benefits of this lifestyle. We all have that one party we’ve been to where you might find someone whose entire personality is based on being vegan. Now, there are definitely some merits to this lifestyle choice, not just for your health but on moral and ethical grounds as well. However, doesn’t there need to be a clear boundary regarding how far one should impose their lifestyle on others?

This was the basis for a new post on the popular subreddit Am I The A**hole? (r/AITA). In the writeup, a man describes how he feeds his daughter’s vegan friend meat in their meals during sleepovers. 

Man Feeds Daughter’s Vegan Friend Meat Because She Looks ‘Malnourished’

OP wrote, “My daughter and her friend are both 12 years old and like to have sleepovers every now and then. Her friend, M’s, family maintains a strict vegan diet where she isn’t even allowed to drink milk. Her parents are nice people although a bit on the neurotic side. M is a bright young girl and she’s a good friend to my daughter but I noticed how much smaller and paler she is compared to my daughter. So whenever she is over I always make a big meaty meal for them. Last weekend I made some cheeseburgers and steak for them on the grill with a big glass of milk. M absolutely loves it and always politely asks for more. For snacks, I give them some of my venison jerky. Despite her size, M always wolfs down whatever I make.”

While it may seem that the OP believes he has this girl’s best interest at heart, should he be imposing his way of living on someone else’s child against the will of their parents? She is still a minor under the guidance of her own parents. Making these meat-based meals may only create problems with the girl’s parents. This is why he turned to r/AITA to ask if he was doing the right thing by feeding someone who looked like she could do with a bit of protein in her diet. 

r/AITA Thinks OP Crossed A Major Line By Going Behind The Kid’s Parent’s Back

u/jmgolden33 was pretty up front about their impression regarding OP’s actions. They stated, “You are absolutely judging her family, and her family’s diet, and you are doing this out of some misguided form of activism. You think you’re the hero here saving her from some injustice. It’d be one thing if you were maybe just trying to make the kid happy one time and keeping a little secret- but you are doing this to make a statement. You’re actively and defiantly disrespecting her parents.” 

u/Kare6Bear6 went on to mention that it wasn’t OP’s concern whatsoever. “You are not her doctor. This isn’t your choice to make. Undermining her parents’ dietary choices is going to do more harm than good for her. To jump from a strict plant based diet to one heavy with dairy and meat and then to go right back to strict plant based, that shocks the body so to speak. If you’re concerned about her health, talk to her parents.” u/amstrumpet gave a pretty succinct verdict on the whole vegan issue. They wrote, “Not your place to decide how someone else raises their kid. If you think there’s an issue, talk to them. If you think the issue borders on abuse, talk to the authorities.”

This is a tough story to give one singular opinion. On one hand, OP’s actions go against the will of the girl’s parents, but on the other, it seems she enjoys the meals. So it begs the question, who is imposing on who? Does this girl not get a say of her own? Let us know what you think in the comments!

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