Shiloh Hendrix, the White woman who appeared to hurl a racist slur at a Black child in a now viral video, has raised over $600,000 in donations for herself on a fundraising page
Hendrix appeared to call a 5-year-old child the n-word at a park in Minnesota, and she now claims her family has been “attacked” and they may need to “relocate”
The fundraising page, which was initially flooded with donations from people expressing racist beliefs and sympathies, has raised over $600,000, surpassing its $50,000 goal
A White woman who appeared to hurl a racist slur at a Black child has raised over $600,000 in donations for herself on a fundraising page.
Video of the Minnesota woman, who has since been identified as Shiloh Hendrix, began circulating on social media after she seemingly called the 5-year-old the n-word on a playground in Rochester on Monday, April 28, according to NBC News.
The man recording the video, who has since identified himself as Sharmake Omar, told the outlet that he knows the boy and his family, and the child is on the autism spectrum.
In the video, Omar can be heard confronting Hendrix, who is seemingly holding her own child, after she allegedly used the slur. Hendrix, who uses the n-word several times in this video, exclaims, “Mind your f—— own business,” and then claims that the 5-year-old child “took my son’s stuff.”
As Omar asks Hendrix if she thinks that merits calling “a little child” the n-word, she replies, “If that’s what he’s going to act like.”
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After the ordeal went viral, Hendrix set up a fundraising page for herself, which she titled “Help Me Protect My Family,” on GiveSendGo. She claimed in the page’s description that she is now in a “dire situation.”
“I recently had a kid steal from my 18-month-old son’s diaper bag at a park. I called the kid out for what he was,” Hendrix wrote, then claiming that members of her family are “being attacked” and her personal information, including her address and phone number, has been leaked.
She concluded the message by asking for funds “to assist in protecting my family” and potentially “relocate.”
Hendrix’s fundraising goal was originally set for $50,000, but it has since been increased to $1 million after that initial amount was reached, per local news outlet KIMT3. The fundraiser has raised over $624,000 as of Sunday, May 4.
In an update to the page, Hendrix expressed gratitude for the “overwhelming support” that she and her family received, stating, “I’ve never felt so scared, yet reassured in my life.”
The GiveSendGo page was flooded with people expressing racist beliefs and sympathies in public notes that accompanied their donations, which prompted the crowdfunding service to mute the comments section, per The Washington Post.
In a statement to the outlet, Jacob Wells, the founder and chief executive of GiveSendGo, said the company “does not endorse or condone the personal views or actions of individual campaign organizers or their supporters, nor do we control the motivations of donors.”
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Swings (stock image)
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The City of Rochester shared a statement about the incident in an official Facebook post on Thursday, May 1, writing that city officials were “aware of a deeply disturbing video recorded at one of our City parks that contains racial slurs.”
“The City of Rochester is firmly committed to fostering public spaces that are inclusive, welcoming, and safe for all residents and visitors—spaces where individuals of all backgrounds can relax, play, and connect with friends and neighbors,” the statement continued, adding that the Rochester Police Department (RPD) was “actively looking into the matter.”
PEOPLE reached out to the RPD for comment on Sunday, May 4, but did not receive an immediate response.
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