Get behind on child support payments in Arizona and you could find yourself being shamed on Twitter or Facebook…..
An Arizona agency began shaming deadbeat dads on Twitter and Facebook last week after Governor Doug Ducey called out fathers in his state who aren’t taking care of their child support responsibilities.
In his state of the state address Ducey said “Too many of our kids find themselves in difficult family situations because their dads aren’t being dads,” “So guys, I’ve got a message for all of you out there: Wherever the authorities know of a deadbeat dad in Arizona — find him and hold him to his responsibilities with the full force of law. If you are old enough to father a child in Arizona, you’re old enough to assume financial responsibility for that child.”
By that evening, the Arizona Department of Economic Security began tweeting out photos and names of dads who are behind on their child support payments.
The campaign isn’t just focused on fathers, either. Both deadbeat moms and dads showed up on social media.
Not everyone likes the new campaign. The group World Human Rights suggested in tweets that the shaming is unfair since it elevates offenders to the same status as a wanted sex offender.
But Ducey pointed out that the effort is not aimed at parents who are just a few payments behind, rather it targets 421 of the worst offenders in the state who collectively owe more than 20 million dollars in back child support.