In a now-viral video, a Wisconsin man is facing backlash following his action at his daughter’s school graduation. The high school student had just received her diploma and was in the process of shaking her hand when her father stormed on stage.
On Saturday, June 1, 2002, Baraboo High School held its graduation ceremony, which was livestreamed on YouTube. However, the now-viral event is known for its one-minute clip where a father interrupts his daughter’s moment. The father has now been identified as Matthew Eddy.
The clip began when his daughter was called up to receive her diploma to applause from school board members. However, just moments after she began shaking hands with school administrators, her father ran onstage. Just as she was about to shake hands with Superintendent Rainey Briggs, he put himself between them. Consequently, he stopped any contact between Briggs and his daughter.
Briggs, who understood his intentions, decided to respect his wishes and stepped away from the girl. The student, who was originally smiling, suddenly appeared worried suggesting her discomfort with the situation. In the video, Eddy was heard saying he didn’t want his daughter to touch Briggs. Although there was no further relation between Eddy and Briggs, Briggs has filed a restraining order against Eddy.
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According to reports, after the incident, Eddy was ushered out of the building and has been charged with disorderly conduct. The Baraboo school district has since released a statement in regards to the incident. They said that while they value altercations and confrontations, they also ensure that it is kept in polite terms.
Additionally, they said that as they teach civil dialogue to students to prepare them for the outside world, their parents should do the same. They ended their statements by saying that no employee of theirs should be scared of performing their duties.
Since the video went viral, Eddy has been subjected to constant criticism from the public. The outpour had been coming mostly from YouTube where the video was posted on. The majority of the comments on the video show disbelief and shock at the incident.
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A commentator had written that there was nothing that could make them act in such a manner, drawing insults to their child. Another person had written that it was her special day and her father decided to permanently ruin it from her. Another comment said that Eddy just proved to a lot of people that racism was taught at the dining table.
As word of the video spread, many people started searching social media for Eddy. According to reports, he works for Holtz Builders Inc., which appears to have taken down his profile from its website in response to criticism.
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The company received harsh Facebook reviews from several users who claimed that it hired a racist. Someone wrote,
“THEY ARE PROTECTING THE FEELINGS AND KEEPING EMPLOYED A RACIST BOY NAMED MATTHEW EDDY, WITH VIDEO CIRCULATING OF HIM PUSHING A BLACK SUPERINTENDENT OUT OF THE WAY BECAUSE HE DID NOT WANT HIS DAUGHTERS HAND TOUCHING A BLACK MANS…. FEAR NOT MATTHEW, SHES GOING TO TOUCH A LOT OF BLACK THINGS IN COLLEGE AND IT WONT BE HANDS.”
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