Dad Defends Bullied Daughter With Emotional YouTube Video
CHICAGO (CBS) — Prior Lake, Minnesota dad Brad Knudson posted a short, emotional video to YouTube this week to share how twins from a local high school allegedly bullied his African-American daughter on Snapchat. Knudson also reveals how the twins' father defended their behavior with his own racially-charged comments.
Snapchat is a popular app that allows users to send photos and videos that exist for a few seconds and then disappear. In his YouTube video, Knudson holds up a phone showing two people allegedly calling Knudson's daughter "a slut, a "n*****," and a "fat a** b****."
Knudson claims he tried multiple times to speak with twins' parents, to no avail. He then went to the police, who contacted the twins' school. Through these efforts, Knudson connected with the twins' father, Deron Puro, by phone.
After a heated conversation, Knudson claims in the YouTube video that Puro left him a voicemail saying, "I guess you're a n***** lover." Knudson states that he called Puro back and said, "I have a beautiful African-American daughter who I love more than life itself and would do anything for her."
CBS 2 reached out to Devorah Heitner, PhD, founder of Raising Digital Natives and an expert in cyber bullying. "Teens and adults need to be accountable for their racist behavior, and yet the bullies are also children who will hopefully change and grow." She continues, "Snapchat offers the illusion of something temporary, but these images can be preserved."
Commenting on Knudson's desire to protect his daughter, Dr. Heitner states, "As we've seen again and again, sometimes the virtual community feels like a lifeline to a young person who is tormented online. But bullied kids and their families need tangible community support as well."
