To learn more about 'Insane Parents Memes,' we contacted its moderators and one of them agreed to have a little chat with us.
"This subreddit is an offshoot of r/insaneparents, which currently sits at 1.4 million users," they told Bored Panda. "It's a place for our users to post memes which are not allowed in the larger sub per its rules because not everyone there wants to see them. So, this subreddit is for those who want to express themselves in that way.
The activity level, according to the mod, is normal for an offshoot sub with 15K members.
The moderator said, "People want to know they aren't the only ones who have gone through these things, and it is cathartic for them to know that not only is it not normal, but others have been through it as well. Those experiences can range from the mundane to literal abuse, although in both cases, physical abuse is avoided because it violates Reddit's terms of service."
Among the memes, it's not the types of parents that have become infamous within the community but rather the individual behaviors. "These experiences can range from being tossed onto the street at 18 to having religion or politics shoved onto them from a young age, as well as failures of communication, et cetera."
For the most part, grown-ups get along with their old folks. According to a 2023 survey by the Pew Research Center, 32% of young American adults describe it as excellent, and another 28% say it is very good, while 23% say it is good, and just 18% say it is fair or poor.
Most (69%) also feel like they can be their true selves around their parents (about two-in-ten (19%) say they can do this some of the time, and 11% say they can rarely or never be their true selves).
Still, young American adults say they and their parents disagree at least sometimes about:
- How they’re raising their children (40%, among those who are parents themselves);
- Their financial choices (39%);
- Their career or job situation (37%);
- Their social life (34%);
- Their political views (33%).
Fewer, but still a considerable number of young American adults, say they and their parents disagree at least sometimes about:
- What their parents think about their spouse or partner (30%, among those who are married or living with a partner);
- Their choice of romantic partners (30%, among those who are neither married nor living with a partner);
- Their views about religion (29%).
