Father confronts son's bully and what happens next touches hearts of thousands in viral video

Most parents’ instinct would be to vent out their anger on their child’s bully. But a father in Houston went a different route and discovered it was the right thing to do.

Aubrey Fontenot was concerned about his son Jordan being bullied so he made an effort to meet the boy who was causing his son’s pain. Audrey wasn’t expecting the events that happened next after speaking to his son’s bully. A video of his encounter with the boy whose name is Tamarion revealed a deeper story that’s now touched the hearts of many.

AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER

To find out why Jordan was being bullied, Aubrey took Tamarion for a ride. It was then that the concerned father discovered the young boy was being bullied too. A victim of bullying himself, Aubrey listened to the child’s story and was overcome with compassion instead of anger. He found out all the other kids in school were picking on Tamarion who seemed to be keeping a secret about his home life.

“He was being bullied for not having clean clothes n clean shoes,” Aubrey wrote to caption the video he posted.

Aubrey took the initiative to find out more by calling Tamarion’s mother. He discovered the family struggled to make a living and were often homeless.

At that point, Aubrey knew he had to help so he purchased the boy new clothes and shoes. This brought a smile to Tamarion’s face. They were eventually laughing and singing on the road.

THE BULLY MEETS THE BULLIED

Aubrey’s next goal was to settle things between Jordan and Tamarion. He made the two meet and talk. It was when he turned off his camera that the two finally bonded and became fast friends.

The next day, Aubrey reflected on his experience and wrote in a separate post on Facebook

"We have no clue what these children are going thru these days because a lot of us just don’t care. And this isn’t a uncommon story for a lot of people .. so I spent a lot of my day yesterday by shopping and teaching this young man about self respect. Integrity. Morals. Confidence. And other things that consist of going from a troubled youth to a great man.”

Aubrey has since set up a GoFundMe campaign for Tamarion. The child’s family is currently staying at a hotel. The page has earned over $24,000 in donations so far.

STATISTICS CONCERNING BULLYING

Cases of bullying have become very common in schools. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, at least one out of every five students are bullied. Studies reveal that one of the reasons children bully other children is due to a personal history of being bullied. Much like Tamarion, children who experience social rejection are prone to passing it on to others.

The threat of bullying has become even more grave with the rise of suicide cases due to it. According to the Center for Disease Control in 2014, many cases of suicide-related behavior are linked to bullying, being bullied or the witnessing of bullying.

BULLYING GONE WRONG

A sad case of a 10-year-old who hanged herself is a clear example of this. Ashawnty Davis had been bullied for a long time when she decided to stand up for herself one day and fought with her bully. Their fight was recorded on video and uploaded online. This devastated Davis who ended her life after.

WHAT WE CAN DO

The extent to which bullying can take children makes Aubrey’s story even more important. It’s a lesson on listening to what these children have to say, both the bully and the bullied. More often, there’s a deeper story that’s longing to be told. If parents and the school work hand in hand to learn their stories, these children could be provided the help they need before things go too far.