TikTok Family Responds to Criticism For Potentially Dangerous Viral Disney 'Hack'

We love Disney probably MORE than the next family. We took our middle baby on a family trip for his first birthday and have been back multiple times every year since. As the admininstrator of a very large Disney group online, I have seen all the ways in which people will attempt to bend the rules to get what they want at the parks. I'll be the first to admit, for a wildly expensive vacation, I can't say I blame people for wanting to stretch their dollar as far as possible. On the other hand, I have never seen a Disney "hack" as irresponsible or dangerous as the one that's been going around on TikTok.

Now, it seems like The Kelly Fam has also realized the dangerous impact of the content surrounding their Disney shoe hack. They've taken it all down and instead posted a mea culpa on their TikTok channel. But is it too little too late? It comes several days after sharing their initial "ultimate Disney hack" video—and after major backlash and criticism over potentially putting their son in danger.

Here's how it all started. In the original video, the narration talked about how the family's youngest son Kannon is a thrill seeker and loves getting on rides at amusement parks. But he doesn't quite hit the mark in terms of height requirements for some of the more adventurous rides. So the family took matters into their own hands. The parents can be seen shopping for and purchasing a platform shoe for their son. Then, with the help of some flip flops and gorilla glue, they can be seen adding additional layers to the bottom of the shoe to make a higher platform and help their son "meet" the height requirements for the ride.

The collective rage from both parents and non-parents all over the internet has been loud and livid. Amusement parks, Disney especially, are a privilege. The height requirements put into place for rides are not negotiable. I can only imagine the endless amount of testing that goes into a ride before guests are allowed to experience them and the height restrictions are put into place as a safety measure. Children who don't meet the height requirements for rides are at higher risk for injury, including falls and ejections from rides. The safety mechanisms on a ride are designed by the manufacturer for people that fall within the stated requirements.

It seems like all of that would be common sense. And yet here we are. The sharing of this hack was not only irresponsible for the millions of people who have now seen it, but it literally put the child in the video in danger. As a parent, we have an obligation to our children to teach them right from wrong. Bending the rules or trying to cheat the system so that you fit within the rules? WRONG! Disregarding the rules because they may not be fun? WRONG! In this case, the blatant disregard for the rules is not only wrong but dangerous. How can you plan to hold your children accountable for future indiscretions when they are literally being taught that the rules don't apply to them?

The parents initially responded to the backlash from commenters by insisting that they would never encourage anyone else to try their "hack." They also shared that their son never actually rode any of the rides that he didn't make the actual height requirements for. But yet another video posted on YouTube, along with images circulating on the internet, shows the family successfully putting their hack to the test.

So finally, the Kelly family took down all of the videos related to the shoe hack—and replaced them with their mea culpa. In the video, the couple says that with their influence comes responsibility. They admitted while their son was not injured executing their "hack," they'd never want anyone else to get hurt from one of their ideas. They also said they are committed to being more careful with the content they put out.

Influence and responsibility to the masses aside, I look forward to the day when people are not so obsessed with chasing clout on social media that they forget basic safety. The family may all have been unharmed this time, but we really shouldn't be promoting breaking rules that are put into place to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe.