‘I Am Serving the Lord’: Tony Dungy Issues Blunt Response to Critics Outraged Over DeSantis Fatherhood Event By Billy Hallowell for Faith Wire
Famed football coach Tony Dungy is hitting back after critics lambasted his appearance Monday alongside Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) at a signing event for HB 7065, a bill aimed at bolstering fatherhood.
Dungy, who helped found All Pro Dad, an organization that supports fatherhood, said, despite the harsh critique, he will continue to support fathers and families and will continue “serving the Lord.”
We’ll get into his full remarks on the matter, but let’s first explore the background.
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The bill at the center of the Dungy angst — signed Monday by DeSantis — empowersFlorida’s Department of Children and Families to provide grants to non-profits that focus on helping equip fathers to be more engaged with their children. The massive effort will purportedly dole out $70 million to these charities.
Recipients will include mentorship opportunities for at-risk kids and groups aimed at helping dads make good on child support responsibilities, among other efforts.
“Any dad who may not be engaged, we want to be able to support,” DeSantis said during the signing event Dungy attended. “We’ve got programs, we’ve got community groups, we’ve got non-profits … You’re not a man by leaving your kids hung out to dry. You need to be there.”
The effort might, at first sight, seem relatively uncontroversial, but it didn’t take long for some to make it political and try to bully Dungy with online criticism.
Why Was Dungy Under Fire?
It appears Dungy received critique based on two key factors: comments he made in 2014 about an unrelated issue — and general disagreement with his fatherhood comments made during the signing ceremony.
Let’s lead with the latter issue: Dungy praised the bill during the event and shared his personal story of having a loving dad growing up. After he started coaching, though, he said he learned of the full impact of fatherlessness.
