Video of man furiously spanking grandson goes viral, Twitter divided whether it's 'child abuse' or 'discipline'
A video of a man spanking a young boy in public and then yelling at a young girl has gone viral on social media and sparked a furious debate about whether his actions constituted child abuse. The video in question was first posted on Twitter by a user with the handle @InkedRanjei and has since been viewed more than two million times. It has also been retweeted close to 18,000 times, with thousands offering their opinion on the touchy subject.
In the footage, a man, believed to be the childrens' grandfather, could be seen making the young boy lie on his stomach before spanking him repeatedly. He then forcefully picks the boy back up, walks to the young girl seated next to him, and points his finger at her as he says, "Sit your a** back down." The young girl could be briefly seen protesting before the video ends.
Social media users were split almost evenly when it came to proclaiming it as child abuse or suggesting extreme disciplinary measures were necessary when it came to certain children to ensure they did not grow up spoilt. Those who were in support of the spanking argued they had been subjected to beatings as children as well and claimed they were no worse for wear because of it. They also said the younger generations were soft because they had not been spanked.
"I got whupped with extension cords switches belts paddles etc and I turned out ok," one user wrote. "All these people complaining are the same 1’s that let there child do any and everything and act like there child is perfect. Y’all new generation never had an a** whupping. Y’all need it."
"All the people that are saying this is abuse probably disrespected their parents and lack discipline. I see nothing wrong here. Compared to how I was whooped, this is light work," another posted.
"They way I see it’, you don’t want a spanking then behave," a third tweeted. "Most parents that spank don’t do it just because. It’s a response to children not listening the first time. That’s the issue with today’s society too much entitlement and not enough discipline. Listen the first time."
Also in the pro-spanking group were professional boxer Jamel Herring and Olympic hurdler James Carter. Herring said the "whoopings in public not only embarrass you, it gets your act together" while Carter said the beatings he received as a child pushed him into making two Olympic teams and finals.
But many said they had suffered because they had been beaten as children and that it still traumatized them to this day.
"I got hit like this & worse as a kid," one user tweeted. "It’s the worst way to discipline your child because all it does is make them resentful and fucks up their self esteem. I never learned anything from getting hit except to hate my parents, to be afraid of people above me and have trust issues."
"This is gross and anyone condoning it is disgusting as well. If you have to hit your kids to make them listen, you’re the problem," another wrote.
"This is disgusting. There's never a reason to start hitting kids. If you raise them correctly from the start you can not only get them to chill out but also understand why they're doing what they're doing and solve the problem. Parents lay the foundation for what kids respond to," a third commented.
"As someone who has survived abusive corporal punishment from my parents who come from a culture where this is deeply normalized, I assure you that this is bad parenting and children do not deserve this kind of abuse," a fourth opined.