The parents of the 6-year-old skateboarder videotaped being kicked down a half-pipe by his father at Jacksonville's Kona Skate Park say the family is leaving the First Coast after their lives were "turned upside down" when the video went viral.
In a live Today Show interview Monday morning, Emily White, mother of 6-year-old Dino "The Dinosaur" Crossland, said "it's been really rough" since the Instagram video of her husband kicking their son down the ramp went viral in April.
"As a mother I've had to do what I can to keep my child safe and protected from the media," she told Today Show host Willie Geist. "We ended up losing a babysitter; not only did my husband lose his job, I was unable to work."
In a pre-recorded report that aired before the interview, Dino's father publicly apologized for the incident, calling it a "bonehead decision."
WATCH: The Today Show speaks with Marcus Crossland and Emily White
"It was my poor attempt at trying to help him overcome his fear," said Marcus Crossland, speaking to NBC News correspondent Kerry Sanders.
Emily White defended her husband, sharing her outrage over the hate that has been directed at him since the video made headlines.
"You can be the most amazing, kind-hearted, giving person in the world, all it takes is that two seconds and people will hate you," she told Sanders
"He's a really great dad, he loves his children, he's a hard worker, and he's an all around good person, and beyond that we love him," White said of Crossland when asked by Geist what she wants the world to know about her husband.
An investigation into the incident by The Florida Department of Children and Families and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is ongoing.
You can follow Patrick Donges on Twitter @patrickhdonges.
