THE GUNNER NAME DILEMMA

A pregnant poster's baby name choice got laughed at before the baby was even born: "Gunner."

The poster, expecting a boy, asked whether the name belonged on the dreaded bad-name subreddit. They wanted something unique, and the first reactions were not encouraging. Their fiancée said it "sounds like a dogs name" and told them to "quit being stupid." The poster's brother went even simpler: "gooner."

Still, the poster kept the question open. They said the baby would be half white, and "Gunner" sounded like a nice white name to them. The middle name would be Alexander or lee. In the main post, they framed it as a straightforward ask: "I just want a unique name."

Then came the added context, and the reasoning behind the choice. The poster explained they picked Gunner partly because their fiancée is white, and partly because their own family has very "Mexican" sounding names. They grew up in a very white area and were mocked for their name. Their brothers, Enrique and Alberto, were teased too. At one point, an older kid called them "off brand gay ninja turtles," and their younger brother cried.

That history shaped what they wanted for their son. The poster said they had always wanted white names, and now, even though they love their own name, they wanted to give their child a WHITE name, a cool WHITE name, so he wouldn't be made fun of. They said "Gunner" felt like a nice white name, and that even canyon seemed like a classic "cool persons" white name.

But the responses started shifting things. After reading the comments, the poster said they were rethinking what counts as cool in white culture. They thanked people for weighing in, even the harsh ones.

In a follow-up, the poster added more context again: they said they do not suffer from self hatred and are proud of their heritage, but childhood experiences affected them more than they realized. They also pushed back at people telling them to seek therapy or not have more kids, asking them to stop being mean.

Then came the update. The poster said they appreciated the comments and suggestions and had been "flip flopping back and fourth" because some people strongly disliked the name and made good points, while a few supporters, including some Gunners who commented, also made good points.

They also showed the post to their fiancée. According to the poster, he had been "laughing has ass off for an hour" and got a confidence boost he never needed.