The Bates family of Tennessee is often compared to the Duggars.
It makes sense, as they’re also a large large fundamentalist clan who formerly starred on a basic cable reality series, but has since fallen on hard times.
Make that very hard times.
Sure, the Bateses’ fall from grace hasn’t been as swift and severe as the Duggars’, but looking at their financial situation and their interactions with their former fans, it’s hard to believe that these people were ever pseudo-famous.
The latest controversy involving the Bates family centers around Carlin.
No, sadly, we’re not talking about the late comedy legend George Carlin (although it would be awesome if he were somehow causing trouble for a family of opportunistic fundies from beyond the grave).
Rather we’re talking about Carlin Bates and the strange situation involving her health — and her husband’s apparent desire to cash in on a family crisis.
The Bateses’ string of bad luck began when UpTV canceled Bringing Up Bates earlier this year.
(The decision may have had something to do with the scandals surrounding the Duggars, who have long been close friends with the Bates clan.)
Then things got much worse, as 24-year-old Carlin Bates developed a seizure disorder after giving birth to her second child.
Carlin and husband Evan Stewart have made the controversial decision to depict some of Carlin’s worst moments in their YouTube videos.
You can watch one such clip below, but be warned that it features some pretty graphic moments.
As The Ashley’s Reality Roundup reports, many commenters were not happy with the decision to post videos of Carlin’s seizures, and some went so far as to accuse Evan of opportunism.
“Why do you have to show this? Poor Carlin needs help and privacy,” one commenter wrote.
“Why would you film that? Shows that you only care about views and not the actual human that is your wife!” another accused.
“So sad for Layla to see this. Someone should of moved her,” a third chimed in, referring to the couple’s daughter.
“Everyone on FB is freaking out that you posted this video of your wife in such a vulnerable state. Please consider removing that part,” a third advised.
The Stewarts also revealed that Evan had recently been let go from his job as an electrician after his Family And Medical Leave Act (FMLA) time ran out.
“[I] need 24/7 someone watching [me],” Carlin said in the video. “I sound like a baby.”
“She hates it because, like we said, 90 percent of the time she’s fine, but when she’s not you’ve got to make sure someone is there,” Evan explained.
“All the FMLA at this point had been exhausted. So, pretty much, to be blunt, they would have to fire me. But that’s no shade to them; they were very sweet and everything but that’s just how it works,” Stewart continued.
“They would have to take me off their payroll so they did…I don’t blame them. They don’t want to keep somebody on their roster that can’t be there.”
Carlin says she feels bad that Evan has been forced to put his career on hold, but it’s not all bad news.
Evan has been hired at the Bates Sisters Boutique, the clothing store in Rocky Top, Tennessee that’s owned by Carlin.
“So [I was] fired and hired in the same day!” Evan joked. “And my wife is my new boss.”
We wish these two all the best as they navigate these difficult times!