Washington dad says his 13yo son is bullying his classmates. Then he challenges him to a boxing match: ‘You like to bully kids and girls, hit me’

A Washington father has gone viral after posting a TikTok video in which he disciplines his 13-year-old son by challenging him to a boxing match. TikToker @boostedspeeddemon claimed his son had bullied his classmates, prompting him to discipline the teen by having them both gear up with protective equipment and spar in a boxing session.

The father explained that he had always taught his son, Talon, to stand up to bullies and treat girls with respect. However, after learning that Talon had allegedly bullied two classmates, a smaller boy and a girl whom he reportedly told to take her own life, he decided his son needed to experience what it was like to be on the receiving end of such behavior.

Talon appeared visibly frightened before the boxing session began. His father confronted him about his behavior toward other children, asking, “You think you’re big and bad, right?” Talon quickly denied it. “Oh, suddenly you don’t think you’re big and bad when someone bigger and tougher is standing in front of you, huh?” his father taunted.

What goes around comes around

His father instructed him to throw the first punch, but Talon hesitated and kept crying. His father warned that he would strike first if Talon refused. Eventually, Talon began throwing light punches at his father’s face. When he failed to hit harder, his father responded with a punch that knocked Talon off balance. “Come on, you’re so tough. You like to bully kids and girls, hit me,” the father told him.

Talon continued to throw weak punches, tearfully saying at one point, “I don’t want to be a bully.” His father struck him in the face again, causing Talon to retreat. The father then asked, “Does it feel good when somebody bigger than you bullies you?” Talon said no. When asked if he would bully anyone again, he gave the same answer.

The father later shared an update, explaining that he also required his son to write apology letters to the two students he had bullied and planned to include his phone number so the children’s parents could contact him directly if Talon ever mistreated them again.

Many people in the comments praised the father for holding his son accountable for his behavior. “This is parenting! Hold your kids accountable,” one person commented. A second wrote, “You are a good father. This will be a formative moment for his development into manhood.”

However, some commenters disagreed with the father’s approach, saying that responding to violence with more violence is not the solution to combat bullying. “This is not a good way to deal with your son,” one user said. Another argued, “That’s not gentle parenting love that’s just abuse.”

Bullying is a serious issue. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, it affects up to 75% of children between kindergarten and 12th grade. “Being bullied is linked to internalizing problems such as anxiety and depression and externalizing problems, like rule-breaking and aggression,” Texas Woman’s University psychology professor Lisa Rosen told US News.

When parents learn their child is bullying others, Sameer Hinduja, co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center and a criminology and criminal justice professor at Florida Atlantic University, says the first step is to acknowledge that their child could be engaging in behaviors that hurt others. Regardless of whether the father’s punishment of his alleged bully son is seen as appropriate or too extreme, he has made it clear that there are “no bullies in his house.”