Since Jada Pinkett-Smith’s Red Table Talk premiered through Facebook Watch, she’s been a big topic of discussion with each webisode that’s aired. Each week, Jada opens up about personal things in her life. This week, she revealed her son Jaden Smith actually left home at just 15-years-old. At such a young age, the teen made the decision to move out of his parents’ home. During the roundtable discussion, Jada recalled that time in their lives when he son approached her with an unconventional birthday request.
New episode of #RedTableTalk is up and my baby @officialjaden joins us at the table to talk parenting and dealing with parents. I hope you’ll join us too ✨ https://t.co/e6cYf9UrYz pic.twitter.com/jF3HxMyOp1
— Jada Pinkett Smith (@jadapsmith) June 4, 2018
Emancipation:
By now, everyone probably remembers when Jaden made headlines after he asked his parents for emancipation as a birthday present. He was preparing to celebrate his 15th birthday when he basically asked to be legally freed from his parents’ authority. Needless to say, the shocking question made Jada feel some kind of way. She admitted that the experience taught her an interesting lesson about motherhood. “One thing that I’ve learned, though, is that every child needs something different. At 15 years old, Jaden ― and I remember this day specifically ― it’s probably one of the most heartbreaking moments of my life,” Jada said. “You got to a point where you told me straight up, you were like, ‘Mom, I have to leave here to live my life.’”
She also admitted that she was initially devastated but ultimately agreed with her son. Jada added, “I remember thinking to myself, as devastated as I was, I was like, he’s right. The time is now. He’s 15. It’s time for him to leave the house.”
Jada recalled a conversation she’d had with her husband, Will, prior to Jaden asking for emancipation. Ironically, she told him she’d be “lucky” if she kept Jaden in the house past the age of 16 due to his level of maturity. “Being in this lifestyle, in this world is a bubble and he wanted out,” Jada said to her mother. “I understood that because I didn’t have the bubble. I knew what having my freedom outside the bubble, what I gained from that. I knew the sooner I let him go, the faster he was going to come back.”
At the time, Jaden’s request turned lots of heads, but surprisingly, his father Will Smith was also onboard with his decision, according to NY Daily News. “If kids just want to have command of their lives, I understand.” Will also opened up about how he and Jada parent. “We generally don’t believe in punishment. From the time Jaden was five or six we would sit him down, and all he has to do is be able to explain why what he did was the right thing for his life,” Smith adds on his parenting.
https://twitter.com/flowermessiah_/status/1004031284056870913
During the intense conversation on Red Table Talk, Jada was left in tears as her children discussed their issues with her parenting.
Check out a clip from the segment:
Criticism and Debates:
Shortly after the latest episode aired, many fans took to social media to share their reactions and opinions of Jada and Will’s parenting decisions. Needless to say, the intense webisode had viewers all in their feelings so the opinions are comin’ from everywhere. Although most fans have enjoyed the webisodes, many admitted this particular segment left them on the fence about a few issues. In fact, many social media users have criticized Jada and Will insisting they’ve never been healthy parental figures for their children. It’s been years since Will Smith spoke about Jaden asking emancipation but fans haven’t forgotten what he had to say.
Check out some of the tweets:
https://twitter.com/WhyStanIdiots/status/1004094775115616256
https://twitter.com/isaiahwards/status/1003841968391245824
https://twitter.com/lifeaspheebs/status/1004003768374124544
However, there were others who sympathized with Jada and Will. Although her children criticized her parenting, many people argue her children have no idea how privileged they’ve been.
https://twitter.com/judy_janzen/status/1004005606573867008
https://twitter.com/iamhiscrown/status/1003684479393599490
What do you think about Jada and Will’s perspective of parenting, ILOSM family?
