Parents furious after man dressed as the Grinch tells young kids Santa is fake
The Texas man is known to be a public nuisance, reportedly shouting at strangers in public and frightening young children.
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It was early in the morning in Texas. Parents were getting ready to drop their kids off at Sleepy Hollow Elementary School, just like any other day.
But as their cars turned the corner and approached the school, there stood a man standing on the footpath in front of the entrance decked out as the Grinch.
The costumed man is David Grisham, a 63-year-old self-confessed "street preacher" well-known for his disruptive protests and behaviour in the local area.
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Man tells kids “Santa is fake”
Kids watched him as they were escorted into the school gates, with shocked and terrorised faces from the young children and their parents as they looked at the protester.
In his hands was a sign that read: “'Santa is fake. Jesus is real.”
Kids and parents were horrified by the sight, and in one clip, a parent clearly had enough and marched up to the pest, demanding he put the sign away.
When David refused to take it away, the dad walked up to him and threw the sign to the ground.
“He shouldn't be pushing his agenda on any people's kids,” a parent told ABC 7 News.
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Kids frightened by man in Grinch costume
Despite being called “unwanted and uninvited” by Sleepy Hollow principal Kelsey Williams, police were unable to arrest David as he was “lawfully on the sidewalk” and not breaking any law.
“I'm saddened by the fact that some of our kiddos and families were frightened because of him,” the principal said.
But David remains unmoved, claiming the parents are “upset” because they’re “prideful” and are “more concerned with the traditions of men rather than the truth.”
Since retiring, the street preacher has brandished signs and shirts with messages such as “Drunks will burn in hell.”
A woman who lived in the area shared on social media that “standing outside schools is mild compared to some of the stuff he’s done.”
“He would stand outside of our local bars with a megaphone calling everyone horrible names,” she said. “He would take photos of cars and post them online to try and publicly shame people.”
RELATED: New viral videos of the Grinch scaring kids shows parents still don’t get it
“What a way to ruin the holiday”
The controversial street preacher has garnered mixed results from people online.
Most were understandably upset by the bold statement, arguing he was ruining the “magic of Christmas” for young kids and “the Grinch would be embarrassed.”
“That's not his right to tell other kids,” someone said. “What a way to ruin the holiday.”
“Crushing their little souls and robbing the magic it brings to children,” read a comment. “Get a life!” wrote a third.
“Why take that magic away from our children?” asked a woman. “Why take from their childhood? I ask what you gain from doing this?”
Some labelled him a “trash human” while others pointed out the irony of his sign and costume choice. “…While the human wears a costume of a made-up character,” someone laughed. “Ironically he’s in a Grinch costume,” said another.
“I bet the holidays at their house are a blast!” someone put it simply.
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Originally published as Parents furious after man dressed as the Grinch tells young kids Santa is fake
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