Tia Mowry is setting the record straight on why she refers to herself as a “single mom” following her split from ex-husband Cory Hardrict.
On Tuesday, July 22, the Sister, Sister alum shared an Instagram reel showing special moments with her kids—14-year-old son Cree and 7-year-old daughter Cairo, whom she shares with Hardrict. In the opening of the reel, Mowry addressed the criticism she’s received for using the term, asking, “Why am I getting backlash for calling myself a single mom?”
“Sometimes I wonder why saying ‘I’m a single mom’ sparks so much backlash,” Tia Mowry wrote in the second slide of her Instagram reel, alongside a serene clip of her walking barefoot on the beach. “Family can look different than what we imagined and still be full of love, stability and joy. This is my truth, and I want to share it.”
As a video played of her doing her daughter Cairo’s hair, Mowry elaborated that being a “single mom” doesn’t necessarily mean the father is absent. Instead, she explained there’s “nuance” to the term—it simply reflects that she’s single and without a partner.
“I’m the only parent present day to day,” she said.
She also opened up about the emotional aftermath of her divorce, recalling how in those “first nights,” she questioned whether she, Cory Hardrict, and their kids were still a family. “Looking back now, I knew we always were,” she reflected.
Mowry emphasized the importance of normalizing different types of family dynamics, writing, “Just because parents aren’t together doesn’t mean the family is ‘broken.’ It just looks differently.”
Tia and Cory were married from 2008 until 2023. Since their split, she’s documented her healing journey on her former We TV series Tia Mowry: My Next Act and often shares thoughtful reflections on divorce and co-parenting, while also posting moments spent with Cory and their two children.
