'I threw my seven-year-old son off a cliff, and I'm a good parent'

An influencer dad claims he is a good parent despite shocking followers when he flung his young son off a cliff to “teach” him a lesson.

Garrett Gee, of the Bucket List Family, was seen attempting to help his seven-year-old son conquer his fears in a now viral Instagram video by picking him up and tossing him from a cliff in Lake Powell, Colorado. The clip, posted to the family's official account with more than three million followers, shows the father and son Calihan standing on an outcrop.

After proclaiming some viewers "won't love" the way he parents, he threw the screaming child over the edge. Now Gee says it is important for people who were not happy with what he did to see more of his content, as he argues that they will then better understand.

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“If somebody came across that video and had only seen that video, then I agree with them," he toldPeople. "Oh man, this looks terrible, and this father's pushing their child too much. But anyone who has followed our journey for a longer time, they understand how thoughtful and cautious we are as parents.”

The clip captures Calihan screaming before entering the water, with onlookers heard cheering him on, and surfacing with a smile on his face.

Garrett follows his son into the water moments later, and posted the video to social media with a disclaimer saying it was "not parental advice, or even something he would advise other people to try". He added in a caption that he and his partner have not used the tactic with their other two children.

“A small part of me felt sad when I would read the comments because you could tell how many people out there didn't have the opportunity to be pushed by their parents to try new things and stayed within their comfort zone," he now says. “That's not the best way to live life.”

Gee does agree that this tactic is not one to be used with all children and he didn’t try it with his other two kids, saying each is “quite different”. He also said the negative criticism hasn’t affected him.

“I'm very confident in who me and my wife are as parents and our intentions and how careful, cautious and loving we are," he said. "It didn't affect me. I understand the nature of the internet.”

Shocked social media users in the comment section quickly reacted to the clip, with many voicing their discomfort at the scene and questioning whether the youngster was ready for the leap.

One commenter wrote: "The scream says it all. He's not ready. I hate this for him." But others were more supportive of the move, with some of his followers commending his bold parenting style.