FLINT, MI – A video is being shared on social media showing an 11-year-old boy being beaten with a belt, triggering a fierce debate over the difference between spanking and child abuse.
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Two people are in custody after the incident where a shared video showed a boy being slapped by a woman after being asked about his behavior and grades. A female’s voice can also be heard in the video saying that people who watch it can call Child Protective Services if they want.
Flint Police spokesman Jason Lorenz says authorities were notified of “of a video showing a possible case of child abuse through social media.”
The video purports to show the boy being hit more than 60 times with a belt over a period of two minutes. As the boy holds a chair, he cries out and bends his legs in order to avoid the beating. When the punishment is over, the boy is then asked to state his name and age for the camera.
The two arrests are believed to have been the mother of the child, Demitria Powell and the grandmother. Powell is reportedly seen slapping her son hard across the face because he “posted untrue things about himself on Facebook” such as that he was older than his actual age as well as him being a member of a gang.
Comments on the Flint police department’s Facebook page exploded with some people saying the child deserved to be beaten, while others were calling it abuse.
The punishment of being whipped with a belt was reportedly carried out by the grandmother.
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