Dozens of local school fights featured on Instagram accounts

CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — As we approach the end of the school year, Channel 2 Action News has learned there are several metro area Instagram accounts dedicated to school fights.
 
Channel 2's Dave Huddleston got a tip from a Clayton County mother about an Instagram account that shows dozens, if not hundreds, of fights. The site, which shows girls and boys fighting at just about every high school and middle school in the district, has more than 30,000 followers.
 
Huddleston showed the videos to Craig Washington, who lives not far from North Clayton High School.
 
"We, as people, we want to blame everybody and police, and we do this to each other every day, that's crazy," Washington said.

Huddleston wanted a professional's opinion about the impact posting these videos online can have on a teenager's mental state.

Adolescent psychologist Andrew Gothard said posting and viewing dozens of school fights can have lasting repercussions on teenagers, even if they are not participants.
 
"For them, it can increase their overall sense of fear and sense of school not being a safe place," Gothard said.
 
Gothard said school officials should limit cellphone use during the school day, and parents should treat computers and cellphones as privileges.
 
"My children know that their emails, their texts, anything they post anything on social media, even their search histories are fair game for their parents to see," Gothard said.
 
Clayton County school resource officers are investigating and school officials have contacted Instagram to see if the social media account can be taken down. 
 
Huddleston also found there are also private fighting accounts for Fulton, DeKalb and Cobb counties.

WSBTV