Twitter erupts after man becomes father
Portland, OR — Although Ziad Ahmed and his partner, Laura just became the proud parents of a new-born baby boy, they have had little time for celebration. The thirty-five-year-old Ahmed says that no sooner had he tweeted a picture of the happy family from the hospital than he received a barrage of insults from “trolls” around the world.
Many users chastised Ziad for drawing attention to an event that they claimed no one cared about, with others seeking to expose him for a gender reveal party he never had.
Others saw his photo as a disappointing testament to the ills of “the patriarchy,” while chastising him for contributing to climate change.
Just when matters couldn’t seem to get any worse for Ahmed, a different side of the social spectrum got wind of his tweet, with their rage stemming from the color of Ziad’s skin.
Speaking with the Daily Orb from Laura’s hospital room, Ziad shared his frustration.
“I was feeling this euphoric joy that I thought people might appreciate at a time like this and it somehow made everyone so angry and hateful towards my family. The racists I don’t care about. At least the thing they arbitrarily hate about me is true – I’m brown, I’m Arab, and my parents are immigrants from the Middle East. What got to me were the mistruths and accusations from the other side on issues that I’m passionate about.”
Laura will be heading back to work on Monday as Ziad begins a year of paternity leave from his position as deputy director at an NGO focusing on the intersection of climate change and women’s reproductive health.
“I’m looking forward to a long break…from everything.”
“Except being a dad,” he added smiling.
