A group of dads has gone viral for their way of dealing with a spate of violence at a Louisiana high school.
The group, Dads on Duty, is made up of about 40 fathers who patrol the halls of Southwood High School in Shreveport in shifts to deter the teenagers from fighting.
The fathers decided to come together after 23 students were arrested for fighting over the course of just three days in September.
On one day alone, 16 September, 14 male students were arrested by police. All were charged with disturbing the peace, and one will be charged with battery for allegedly assaulting the school’s assistant principal, according to KSLA.
However, since the fathers’ group was formed by Michael LaFitte, things have only been getting better.
DADS ON DUTY: After a violent week of fighting at a Louisiana high school, parents knew something had to change. So, a group of dads decided to show up not just for their kids - but for the whole student body - to help maintain a positive environment. @SteveHartmanCBS has more. pic.twitter.com/Uux3qx48sd
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) October 22, 2021
Sporting bright orange t-shirts emblazoned with: “Respect the ranch: Dads on duty”, the fathers’ combination of tough love and light-hearted banter has led to the school becoming a more harmonious environment for the pupils.
“We decided the best people who can take care of our kids are who? Us,” LaFitte told CBS reporter Steve Hartman.
The dads said that as not everyone has a father or any male role model in their life, just being present in the school has made a big difference.
Speaking to CBS, one student said he feels safer, while another said everyone stopped fighting and started going to class once the dads came together.
When the reporter asked a student how it works, the teen replied: “You ever heard of ‘a look’?”
Dads on Duty don’t patrol the halls in an intimidating way, however. A useful tool in their arsenal is of course, the dad joke.
“They just make funny jokes like ‘oh hey your shoe is untied’ but it’s really not untied,” a student said.
Another student told Hartman: “The school has just really been like — happy. And you can feel it.”
Dads on Duty now hope to open chapters across the state and eventually, across the country.
