Why I Turned Off Comments on a Viral Post

My recent post about a moment in a TSA line — a man cutting in front of me and calling me “honey,” and my decision to say, “I am not your honey” — reached hundreds of thousands of people.

Along with that reach came a flood of commentary.

Much of it was thoughtful. Loads of it was not.

People debated whether the moment even happened. They critiqued my tone. They called me names. They suggested I should feel grateful.

Today, I made a decision:

I turned off the comments.

Not because I couldn’t handle them — but because I didn’t need to.

There’s a cultural expectation, especially for women, that if we speak, we must also withstand whatever comes back at us. People often think our credibility is tied to our willingness to endure critique, dismissal, or even abuse.

I disagree.

What happened in that airport was simple: A man used his position to cut a line, followed by a diminutive meant to soften or dismiss. I responded with a clear, calm boundary.

That moment doesn’t require debate to be valid.

And more importantly, my voice doesn’t require a comment section to exist.

Turning off comments wasn’t retreat for me. It was authorship.

It was a choice to hold the center of my own story rather than hand it over to a rabid crowd.

If you’re reading this, im guessing you understand something about the tension that comes from being told to stay quiet, and the tension between speaking up and being spoken over.

That’s the work I’m talking about.

Not reacting. Not performing. Just writing honestly and with intention.

— Christine

P.S. I’ve also written a Substack post about it, which includes screenshots of the vitriol I received for your viewing pleasure.