Instagram/@j_evans1219
Ex-‘Teen Mom 2’ Jenelle Evans put out an assertion which created quite a stir online: “I have always been there for my kids.” The then 33-year-old reflected on her growing years and expressed pride about her present life, although she felt that some people doubted her. This, however, created a backlash amongst followers who saw any number of tumultuous incidents in Jenelle’s past being aired on television.
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The post was simple enough. The two decades-into-early 20s mother of two gave a statement of self-congratulation: “I was ALWAYS there. Never went anywhere. #FamilyFirst I am so happy and proud of myself. And to be where I am today is unbelievable whether any of you agree or not.” This was her statement of redemption, her story of a mother who had washed away her dirt. Yet, for an audience that had witnessed the saga unfold on MTV for over a decade, something about “always” just scratched a sore point-a sore point indeed.
Arguments instantly sprang up in the comments. There were those who were prepared to accept the transformation, while others were stubborn about holding her accountable for her past. The irritated questions came: “Did you forget we all saw you on TV for years?” That one comment created a never-ending argument. Several basically weighed in for Evans, stating she was just a teenager for much of the show’s run and that people deserved to be able to grow. “Did yall forget the poor girl was a teenager,” one said. Others resisted and would argue that many of her most controversial parenting decisions were faced well into her adult years. “She did a lot of things as an adult too.”
An even more condemning voice: “Thats just pictures, we’ve all seen how you really are.”
Basically: An expertly curated social media feed doesn’t drum up a clean slate for anyone with a documented history. Perhaps, the most damaging insult came from a user who said: “You could make the same video w all your mugshots too.”
In the eyes of the critics, this was just a perfect way to remind how many times Evans had scraped the walls of legality over the years.
Meanwhile, some voices were going in her defense. In great detail, another fan said in defense of Evans, “This woman is their mother period. Her children love her and are thankful they have their beautiful mother with them.” This commenter, a daughter of a teen mom herself, went on to emphasize the utmost importance of setting people free from their past. “To be fair guys she GREW UP and she’s a really good mum why y’all holding on to the past??” Another defender practically claimed this was the core of the public discourse surrounding Evans’s image: An endearing mother who’s focused forward or is a concerted effort in the present to whitewash a toxic past?
Another developed back and forth involved a very, very familiar reference from longtime viewers; one commenter amusingly said, “Well Jenelle … I saw you with keifffahhh,” referencing the infamous catchphrase from her mother, Barbara Evans. It was a bright shining moment in an otherwise very serious conversation on Evans’s present and past duality.
Yet there are still the most up-to-date examples. “Letting a man choke your child out and then take the man’s side isn’t being a good mom. That also did not happen 15 plus years ago,” one user commented, referencing her husband David Eason. These instances highlight the hurdles Evans is still facing in trying to clear her name with recent controversies keeping in place that public tinder of her parenting decisions as drastically flawed.
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Jenelle Evans’s post is evidence of her wish to shape her own narrative. She is, by her own admission, in a much better place and wants acknowledgment for that journey. But the voluminous response serves only to show that for a public personality, their past is never really buried, especially when it’s been telecasted into millions of homes. The more-than-slightly-awkward dialogue surrounding her claim of being “always there” is much less concerned with the pictures she posts and the lightning-speed divergence between a very clean, cropped-for-a-look present and a very dirty, public, often messy one packed with the very items that formed the present. The reaction serves as a testament that for Jenelle Evans, going forward means constantly coming to terms with where she’s been. This situation brings to mind the kind of mixed reactions seen when Jenelle Evans mocks an ex on social media. Her online presence often sparks conversation, much like when fellow reality star Kailyn Lowry shares her fashion finds.