The Real Housewives of New Jersey star Melissa Gorga has talked recently about how her daughter Antonia Gorga has grown up and even has a boyfriend.
While Melissa and her husband Joe Gorga have admitted they are not ready to talk to Antonia about “the birds and the bees,” they know the conversation is necessary now that she’s gotten older.
During a clip, Melissa was shown asking her daughter Antonia if she was sexually active. Antonia looked mortified and attempted to hide to get away from the cameras.
After seeing the clip, several fans took to Twitter and criticized Melissa for having such a private conversation while filming.
They couldn’t understand why she would embarrass her daughter like that, especially since she is now at an age where privacy is important.
RHONJ fans criticize Melissa for asking about Antonia’s sex life
Many fans were disappointed after seeing Melissa have such a private conversation with her daughter while on camera.
One fan posted about the interaction and accused Melissa of “choosing fame” rather than having such a personal conversation with her daughter behind the scenes.
Another fan chimed in on the post and felt that while certain topics definitely needed to be discussed with children at Antonia’s age, it didn’t necessarily need to be recorded for millions of people to see.
A separate follower agreed that the conversation should have happened in private and accused Melissa of “crappy parenting.”
Joe Gorga struggles with the idea that Antonia has a boyfriend
The topic of Antonia being old enough to have a boyfriend has been a sensitive one in the Gorga household.
During an earlier episode this season, Antonia asked her parents if she could attend a sleepover. When Joe told her she needed to stay home, one of her little brothers joked that she just wanted to hang out with her boyfriend.
Joe responded and said, “Boyfriend?! Why, do you want to have a boyfriend? What, do your friends have boyfriends?”
Antonia ran out of the room and avoided the conversation completely.
After Antonia left the room, Joe sarcastically said to Melissa, “You want a boyfriend? Here, have a boyfriend. Here’s birth control, honey.”
Later, while shopping for bathing suits with Melissa, Antonia told her mother that she didn’t like to talk to her parents about things because her father could be “scary” and overreacted every time boys were mentioned. Melissa agreed to talk to Joe and get him to calm down a bit.
Joe had a conversation with Antonia after the whole ordeal and said, “You just have to respect yourself. So, I promise you I’m not going to be as strict. I’m going to trust you.”
Joe and Melissa have continued to try and navigate the balance between trusting their daughter and protecting her from growing up too fast.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Bravo.