As parents, we try to teach our kids to distinguish between good and wrong, but we frequently fall short for a variety of reasons. One father discovered that his daughter had been picking on a student with cancer at school. Things progressed so far that she even removed the girl’s wig.
This infuriated the father, who then made the decision to take matters into his own hands by punishing his daughter in a way that sparked controversy and a range of reactions online. The father eventually removed the post after receiving criticism for how he handled his bully daughter.
I have exclusive custody of my ex-wife’s 16-year-old daughter (she has since gone on with her new family). Recently, my daughter was disciplined at school for making fun of a fellow student who had lost her hair due to cancer treatment. Including removing her wig,” he said as he began his article.
I don’t think that even comes close to justifying her behavior, despite the fact that there appears to be some prior animosity between the two of them.
It turned out that the reason they didn’t get along was because his daughter was now dating the ex-boyfriend of the other girl.
“At some point, the other girl mentioned how my daughter’s boyfriend was just using her for sex (this was actually a big shock to me as I had no idea she was sexually active) and called my daughter a sl*t,” the dad told CafeMom. “That’s what caused the incident involving the wig to escalate. Since my daughter began dating the alleged guy, they are said to have been fighting in class. Basically simply naive ‘he said, she said’ teenage babble.
He gave his daughter two options to pick from after learning what had happened and what she had done in an effort to teach her a lesson. The first was that he should destroy all of her equipment, and the second was that she should visit the salon and receive a bald haircut. The daughter made the latter decision and shaved her head to attend school.
“…Everyone believes I went too far. Her mother attacked me furiously, claiming that it would make her the subject of bullying (kind of the purpose, instill compassion in her),” the father wrote.
Though not many people agreed with him, he thought he had done the right thing. Many people took the time to voice their opinions about the circumstance. “Your daughter is a bully because you are a bully,” one commenter remarked. I sincerely doubt this is the first time you’ve ‘taught her a lesson’ by abusing and humiliating her. Someone else continued, “There’s a name for what you did. It is known as child abuse. Her electronics should have been taken away as punishment. It would have been fair to have grounded her. Her right to physical autonomy should not be violated, and she should not be made to feel ashamed. She probably won’t take anything away from it, and if anything, it could keep the bullying cycle going.
There were many who commended his parenting, though. “I wholeheartedly concur with your choice. Since you are her father, you have every right to act in this way; it is not abusive and reflects reality. Someone who supported the father wrote, “If she’s comfortable criticizing someone for something they have no control over, she ought to experience it for herself.
Another supporter said, “She will realize what kind of influence her acts had on the victim, and that will teach her a very important lesson.
What do you think, then? Do you think the father’s punishment was excessive? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below.
Cover image: Representational (Source: Getty Images | Photo by Claudia Evans / EyeEm)
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