Emily Brown
A mom who went viral thanks to a video of her hugging her son after a football game has spoken out to say she 'didn't do anything wrong'.
Amber Wright raised eyebrows after she took to Instagram to share the video of her throwing both her arms and legs around her 16-year-old son, Brixton, after he wrapped up a football game in Utah.
A caption alongside the clip saw Amber write that Brixton will 'forever and always have [her] entire heart', adding: "When I walked up to hug my baby boy after his game, he immediately picked me up and just held me [...] in this moment, time stood completely still."
It looked like a happy moment for the pair, but they've since been forced to defend themselves after Amber's video was flooded with comments raising questions about their relationship.
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Amber took to Instagram today (18 September) to respond to the backlash, making clear that the video showed 'literally a hug' between herself and her son.
"If you're one of the people that happens to see something immoral or sexual or wrong with it then I'm just going to say that's on you," Amber continued.
She described some of the responses to the video of the hug as 'disgraceful', 'disrespectful' and 'crude', but made clear she was 'not going to take [the video] down'.
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"I didn't do anything wrong," Amber added.
Since the video went viral, she has received some more 'positive' and 'supportive' comments from viewers, but overall, she made clear that 'we just have to do better as a society'.
"We live in a society where we're trying to teach our kids not to bully and we're preaching that we all should love one another [...] it just seems very hypocritical...," Amber said.
"It's just not okay, we should all be kind to each other."
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The mom also told viewers she was 'not going to change' the way she interacts with Brixton, who himself has defended his mom and told trolls to 'leave [her] alone'.
"She’s my mom she is my hero the vid of us hugging was a HUG," Brixton wrote online after the video began to gain attention. "Go bother someone else and maybe hug your own kids. You all need Jesus damn."
Speaking to TODAY, Amber explained the video was captured as Brixton wore a football jersey featuring his late father's death date, 4 April, on the field for the first time.
“I was so proud. I was a proud mom hugging her kid," Amber said.
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"I never expected it to turn into something where people are like, ‘You’re sexually abusing him! You're grooming him! I’m calling child protective services."
“He was feeling emotional, and I think as his mom, I’m his safe space."