An 8-month pregnant woman turned her baby bump into a disco look, but faced unexpected backlash online.
Angela Mincolla (@day.by.a), from Buffalo, Wyoming, decided to bling up her swollen stomach using silver tiles for a local cancer fundraiser, which had a disco theme. The impressive result garnered more than 10.5 million views and almost 700,000 likes.
“The social-media reaction has been divided—either really encouraging, uplifting comments or really negative, hateful ones,” Mincolla told Newsweek.
“People love to tell women to embrace pregnancy and their changing bodies, but then say ‘but not like that.’ Pregnancy has been a very isolating, hard time for me, so to go out for a short period of time with some friends to socialize for a harmless event and get some sense of myself back was really empowering.
“It was disappointing to see other people, women especially, completely tear me down without any context to what the environment was or how long I was even out,” Mincolla said.
From left: Angela Mincolla shows off her disco-ball bump. The woman’s glitzy outfit sparked unwelcome backlash online, and she told Newsweek her feelings about it.
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“There is so much hypocrisy around telling women to be confident and love themselves and then being angry when they do,” Mincolla, the founder of 501c3 animal rescue, said.
In the video, the expecting mom donned a white feathered bandeau top and adorned her belly with stick-on silver mosaic tiles. Mincolla showcased her inspired look and fun-filled night out with friends.
Unfortunately, she was met with some disapproval in the comments section. So she updated the caption to call out haters who criticized her for unbuttoning her jeans to show her belly and accused her of drinking an alcoholic beverage, despite it being nonalcoholic.
Mincolla shared the inspiration behind the look for “Born in Barn,” the disco-themed fundraiser.
“I decided the night before to go, so it was a last-minute decision, and knowing I didn’t have time to put an outfit together or buy anything, I got to thinking of what I had in my closet already that would fit,” Mincolla said. “I started with the top but didn’t know what to do about my belly being out, which is when the disco belly idea came to me.
“My friends absolutely loved the idea, were so supportive, and let me borrow the disco tiles and helped me put the look together the day of,” she added.
In recent years, pregnant women proudly displaying their bellies has become a movement of empowerment, largely inspired by high-profile figures such as pop star Rihanna. She made waves when she redefined maternity fashion by confidently showing off her baby bump in bold, revealing outfits.
Angela Mincolla poses with her disco-baby bump. The expecting mother told Newsweek that her friends helped her create the look for a fundraiser.
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This trend has grown in popularity, with women feeling encouraged to embrace their changing bodies without the need to conceal or cover up. As seen with Mincolla, the disco baby bump was her own creative interpretation of this movement, celebrating both motherhood and personal expression.
Despite the criticism, Mincolla’s glitzy look also received a flurry of praise and support.
“Such a cute idea, also are people okay? Genuinely… do they not know nonalcoholic beverages exist or what a can of White Claw looks like?!” posted one viewer.
“Don’t do this! If you drink fizzy water and decorate your baby bump! The baby might come out sparkling and expecting the most high-class disco nursery,” commented another.
“That’s extremely dangerous! Your baby may be born a dancing queen, young and sweet, only 17! Imagine having a baby born at 17 years old!!!!!” wrote a third.
The viral response sparked a conversation on the expectations placed on pregnant women and how society envisions so-called responsible motherhood.
“Even with all the negativity, I’m so glad I went out and showed that pregnant women can still have fun and don’t need to completely lose themselves in the journey of motherhood,” Mincolla said.
“Our entire lives are flipped upside down when growing and raising children, and as beautiful as it is, there’s no denying it’s challenging in many ways, too. I wish more women could feel empowered to hold onto the parts that make them feel their best self when stepping into the role, despite what others may think,” Mincolla added.
