Sir, – I want to raise an issue that I believe many parents will relate to: public life is becoming less and less child-friendly.

Recently, while shopping with my three-year-old and my seven-month-old, my son had a meltdown. He is pre-verbal, diagnosed autistic, and occasionally has tantrums in public places.

Over the years, we have worked out the best way to help him: I park the trolley, sit beside him with the baby, and let him ride it out safely. What once lasted hours now passes in just a few minutes.

Once he is calm, we talk about what happened and continue our day without further incident. That is progress. That is parenting.

But while this was happening, another customer told me to “shut my kid up” because “no one wants to hear that”. Sadly, this is not unusual. I have endured countless side-eyes, muttered comments, and even questions on why he is behaving this way.

The message is loud and clear: children are expected to be silent, invisible and perfectly behaved at all times – or else parents are branded as “bad”.

This attitude is exhausting and deeply unfair. If a parent hands a child an iPad, they are accused of laziness. If a parent allows their child to express their emotions and work through them, they are accused of not having control.

Which is it? Parents cannot win when the very nature of childhood is seen as an inconvenience.

I want to be clear that I do not judge parents who use screens. Sometimes that is the best choice, and often it is survival. Parenting is hard, and every family must do what works for them.

But I have chosen to let my son experience his emotions and learn self-regulation in real-world situations.

That does not make me a bad parent. It makes me a parent who is teaching my child how to live in the world as it really is.

And that, I believe, is the point that society seems to be forgetting. Parenting in public is not about keeping strangers comfortable; it is about raising children into strong, well-adjusted adults.