A mum has defended herself after sending her daughter dressed like a 'basic b*tch' for her school's 'culture day'
Sharlie Darling was forced to explain the costume to staff after they rang to ask why Madeline refused to let go of the Starbucks cup.
The mum, from Orlando, United States, sent the five-year-old to school wearing a pair of Ugg boots, leggings and a scarf while carrying the coffee cup.
The 33-year-old went viral after she shared the incident online - and said that she managed to smooth things over with staff at her daughter's school.
But she was dubbed the "world's worst parent" by critics online, while others said it was hilarious.
"I had a lot of people online criticising me. They were saying 'I can't believe you did that! What was she meant to tell the teacher?", said Sharlie
"I had told her to say she was dressed like mummy for the day.
"I wasn't going to go out and buy her a costume. What was I expected to do? Go out, buy a gown and call her the Queen of England? She's already dramatic, I don't need to put that on her too.
"So I got a call from the teacher, who was quite confused and didn't get the joke.
"She had tried confiscating my daughter's Starbuck cup from her - the cup was empty, it was just a prop - but Madeline insisted it was part of her costume.
"She was very anti throwing away the cup when the teacher asked. She was very proud of the cup, she was holding it in all the photos that day.
"But the teachers obviously thought she was carrying about rubbish, and they didn't get the joke about white girls stereotypically liking Starbucks.
"The teacher asked me 'She's really upset about this cup, what's the situation?', and I said 'She's dressed up as a basic white b*tch.'
"They thought it was super cute, once I explained it. It went over really well with the younger teachers at the school."
The mum said she was initially stumped while thinking of a costume for the school's culture day.
Sharlie said: "My initial thought when I heard the school was doing a culture day was 'I'm not going to do this.' Then I thought 'What could I do?'
"My surname is Darling, so I thought I could do something related to Peter Pan? But aside from that, there aren't really any dominant historical cultures in my family, except for American culture.
"So I just figured I'd dress her up like me. And I happen to be a basic b*tch. That's the culture she's being raised in - coffee, leggings and Starbucks.
"The reaction online has been hit or miss. A lot of people think I'm the world's worst parent or a race hater. They thought I'd thrown away a beautiful opportunity to teach my child.
"But a larger group of people got behind the whole joke. They thought I was being respectful by not appropriating other cultures - but I was just being lazy.
"Because the stereotype is quite universal. I love my Starbucks, I love my leggings.
"Thankfully most people got the joke and knew I wasn't trying to be the world's worst parent or anything.
"I never thought the TikTok would have gotten so much attention. My daughter thinks she's the most famous thing on the planet - I might as well have put her in a tiara."
Viewers were divided, with some lavishing praise on Sharlie over her outfit choice.
One commented: "The Uggs, the Starbucks, the messy bun, the scarf, the striped tee. You didn't miss."
Another wrote: "As a teacher, she would have gotten an A for the day."
"As a teacher, this would have disrupted my class because I'd have been gut laughing the entire day about it," added a third.
Other commenters weren't as humoured by Sharlie's video.
One wrote: "That's why some people shouldn't be parents."
