Seconds after a Wisconsin high school graduate received her diploma, her father stormed the stage, putting the spotlight on himself. Matthew Eddy apparently didn't want his daughter to shake the hands of Baraboo School Superintendent Rainey Briggs, and he stopped any interaction between the two from occurring.
Some say the incident was racially motivated as Eddy and his daughter are white and Briggs is Black.
A video of the graduation was posted on YouTube, and it shows Eddy barging onto the stage and telling Briggs he doesn't want him touching his daughter. The graduate appears distraught at her father's actions, which seem to have ruined a special moment in her life.
Now, Eddy is facing backlash from the community, many of whom have shown little mercy for the father.
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The father seemingly came out of nowhere.
In the video clip, the unidentified teenage girl appears excited to be graduating from Baraboo High School and happily accepts her diploma from a school official. She smiles as she shakes the hands of other school officials, and then suddenly, her father storms the stage.
Eddy can be seen physically moving Briggs aside, allegedly to prevent him from shaking his daughter's hand.
Briggs complied with the father's wishes.
In the video, Eddy can be heard saying, "I don't want her touching him." The video does not show the interaction between the father and the superintendent, but it prompted Briggs to file a restraining order.
According to court documents obtained by WiscNews, Briggs wrote that he heard the father's demands and then "created space" to get away from him.
Per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Eddy was escorted from the building and charged with disorderly conduct.
The school district issued a statement regarding the incident.
WiscNews obtained a statement released by the school district detailing its stance on the confrontation between Briggs and Eddy.
"We value the civil discourse that allows us to have conversations about those ideas; that's at the cornerstone of our democracy. As we prepare our students to engage as citizens and community members, the adults in their lives should provide models of how to engage in productive civil dialogue," the statement reads.
"What we do not condone is engaging in threatening, intimidating, or physically harming behaviors against anyone in our School District community. No employee of the School District of Baraboo should fear for their physical safety when fulfilling their job duties or at any other time,” it adds.
Comments on the YouTube video condemned the father's behavior.
People couldn't believe what they saw.
"I don't think there's anything in this world that could make me embarrass and disrespect my child like that. Her face and reaction made me want to cry for her," one person wrote. "That was her special day of celebration after 12 long years of being in the educational system. And this man chose to ruin it for her. Yep, I'd choose the Bear and her dad is teaching her that she should too. He left her unprotected and humiliated in exchange for feeding his racist ego. Sad."
Another person agreed, commenting, "just look at her face….after 12 years, shes gonna remember this for the rest of her life girl if you see this, you're amazing and congrats ."
This person pointed out a reality for many families: "I always say RACISM IS TAUGHT AT HOME AT THE DINNER TABLE."
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The video prompted backlash for Eddy.
As the video circulated, many began looking for Eddy on social media. He reportedly works for Holtz Builders Inc., which has seemingly removed his profile from its website amid the backlash.
Several people wrote scathing reviews of the business on Facebook for reportedly employing 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."
It is unclear whether Eddy is still employed by the business.
