Jill Duggar Dillard was recently criticized for using Twitter to search for the birth mother of her mother-in-law, Cathy Dillard Byrum. The reality show star was slammed for conducting the search in such a public manner, with some critics pointing out that Cathy’s biological mother might not want to be found. According to Cathy’s own statements about her, she already knows that this is the case; Cathy has tracked down her birth mother before, and she wasn’t interested in meeting the daughter she gave up for adoption.
During the season finale of Jill & Jessa: Counting On, Jill Duggar’s husband, Derick Dillard, mentioned that his mother was adopted. As the Inquisitr previously reported, adoption was a hot topic during the episode, with Jill Duggar and her younger sister Jessa both telling the TLC cameras that they were interested in adopting. However, some critics of the Duggar family believe that Jill needs to learn to be a little more sensitive to all the family members involved the adoption process before she and Derick take in a child in need of a home.
As the Duggar Family Blog reports, Jill Duggar sent out the following request asking the Twitterverse for help tracking down Cathy Dillard’s birth mom.
Please help us find @cldilla birth mom. Anyone know Joyce Perry (DOB 12/9/1925)? Previously in TX, OK & PA. Israel would love 2 meet ggma!
— Jill (Duggar)Dillard (@jillmdillard) June 1, 2016
After Jill Duggar shared all this personal information about her mother-in-law’s birth mother with the entire internet, some critics questioned Jill’s judgment and her motives for trying to track down Israel’s biological great grandmother. One commenter on the Duggar Family Blog theorized that Jill is trying to convince TLC to film a Long Lost Family / Jill & Jessa: Counting On crossover episode.
“Hmm. sounds like someone is trying for a crossover show with Lost Family ,” the critic wrote. “Israel couldn’t care less so why is he being used as the reason for the search?”
Other commenters wondered whether Jill Duggar asked for Cathy Dillard’s permission to search for her bio mom before she decided to get involved in her mother-in-law’s personal life.
“Does CATHY want to know more about Cathy’s birth family?” one critic asked. “If so, why not before now? Why now? I hope Jill & Derick aren’t turning up stones they should be leaving alone. This kind of venture can be full of pitfalls for everyone involved.”
It was also pointed out that Cathy’s birth mother and her relatives might not want to be found, which was at least true for Cathy’s bio mom. Commenters on the Freejinger website have discovered that Cathy Dillard did track down her birth mother years ago, and it seems as though this was a painful experience for her. Last January, Cathy sent out a series of tweets about an interaction she had with her biological mother. She revealed that she reached out to her birth mom when she was 27-years-old, but the woman who brought Cathy into this world made it clear that she wasn’t interested in meeting her. Cathy revealed that her bio mom would have aborted her if it were an option at the time she was born.
If abortion had been legal when I was born, I wouldn’t be here! Neither would Derick, Dan or Baby Dilly!
— Cathy (@cldilla) January 22, 2015
@jessihunt my birth mother whom I located when I was 27. She had put me up for adoption at birth and still didn’t want to meet me even then.
— Cathy (@cldilla) January 23, 2015
@Cassie_Temple @jillmdillard Ah, but my adopted parents wanted me very much!
— Cathy (@cldilla) January 23, 2015
It’s possible that Jill Duggar just reopened a painful chapter in Cathy Dillard’s past by trying to find a woman who wanted nothing to do with her. However, Cathy won’t have to experience the anguish of finding out that her bio mom has also refused to meet Israel; it didn’t take Jill’s Twitter followers long to find out that Cathy’s birth mother died in 1992. Cathy’s adoptive mother passed away in 2014.
Do you think Jill Duggar asked for Cathy’s permission before trying to track down her bio mom? Sound off below.
[Image via Duggar Family Official Facebook ]