Anaia Barnes, 5, swam with sharks in the Bahamas. Her parents said it was to foster an adventurous spirit in their daughter. Photo / Supplied
Anaia Barnes, 5, swam with sharks in the Bahamas. Her parents said it was to foster an adventurous spirit in their daughter. Photo / Supplied
When Elana and David Barnes put a video on YouTube of their 5-year-old daughter swimming, they thought they were sharing their holiday memories with friends and family, not the world.
But the video went viral because it shows Anaia snorkelling with sharks in the waters off the Bahamas.
"Life istoo short to be boring," Elana Barnes told ABC's Good Morning America in explanation of why they let their daughter swim with the nurse, lemon and Caribbean reef sharks.
The video has provoked debate online about whether the Ridgefield, Connecticut, parents were irresponsible in placing their daughter in a potentially dangerous situation.
Ericka Souter, editor of The Stir on the Cafe Mom parenting website, said: "When you are an adult, you are allowed to be as reckless as you want to be. But as parents, it is our job to protect our kids from reckless and dangerous behaviour."
The couple said they researched the risks and decided it was worth it to nurture an adventurous spirit in their daughter. "There's risk assessments in life every day," David Barnes said. "I'm more concerned that they don't put seatbelts in school buses."
