YouTuber Piper Rockelle, 14, fires back at Pink for criticizing her bikini photo

Listen, we love a celeb who looks out for kids, but when Pink criticized 14-year-old YouTuber Piper Rockelle this week for wearing a bikini, she may have taken things a step too far – at least in the internet's opinion (and really, what else is new?).

First, let's rewind: on Sunday, Pink took to Twitter after seeing a photo of the popular personality in her swimsuit, writing, "How many kids like Piper Rockelle are being exploited by their parents? And at what point do the rest of us say … this isn’t okay for a 13 yr old to be posing in a bikini whilst her MOTHER takes the photo?!?!”

That comment led to an intense debate in her comments, with half her fans agreeing that Rockelle is "very sexualized" and her mother is to blame, while the other half accused her of being too critical, and arguing that a teen in a bikini is really no big deal.

One Twitter user went as far as saying, "Whether these adults know it or not, admit it or not, care or not, they are complicit in the exploitation of underage girls. I’ve seen where these pics end up. These images of young teen + pre teen girls are not ‘modelling’ pics. They’re masturbation material for predators." Yikes.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Piper Rockelle (@piperrockelle)

Another, from the other side of the aisle, replied, "Not sure there’s anything wrong with a 13 year old wearing a bikini, or her mom taking a photo. My family and I practically live in the water in the summer, and have tons of photos of my kids in their bathing suits. So what??"

Speaking to TMZ on Tuesday, Rockelle responded to the firestorm, saying, "The first thing I want everyone to know is that my mom doesn't make me do anything. Quite the opposite, I'm a kid who had a dream and my mom is amazing enough to help me live it out."

She added, "I don't think Pink has ever seen one of my YouTube videos because if she did she'd see it's just my friends and me having fun and acting like ourselves. The content we make is the kind of stuff anyone can watch... I know there are kids who are being taken advantage of and that's a real problem, but I'm not one of them."

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Piper Rockelle (@piperrockelle)

Rockelle went on to tell TMZ that she doesn't see anything sexual about a 14-year-old wearing a bikini. She added that, upon learning Pink began her career around the same age made her question where exactly the singer was coming from. “Why was it OK for her to follow her dreams but not OK for me to follow mine?” Rockelle asked.

In an interview with Today, Rockelle also said, “Why do we shame people for that? Pictures of teenagers in bikinis having fun are not sexual. They’re only sexual if you view us that way."

Her mother, Tiffany, also piped in, saying, “Since Piper was a child, she has had a strong love of performing and she has always had a dream. So long as Piper wants to do this and it’s her passion, I’m here for her to follow that dream and protect her."

BEFORE YOU GO: Camila Cabello reveals what terrifying thing Shawn Mendes does while he's in bed

[video_embed id='2270223']Camila Cabello reveals what terrifying thing Shawn Mendes does while he's in bed [/video_embed]