Overview

Shiloh Hendricks "Playground Karen" Controversy refers to a viral debate and controversy surrounding Shiloh Hendricks, a Minnesota woman labeled "Playground Karen" by many, who was filmed calling a Black child the N-word repeatedly in a playground in Rochester in late April 2025. The moment was recorded by a man, purportedly TikTok user @dahab.soomaale, who confronted the woman at the playground during the incident. After the video went viral, Hendricks started a GiveSendGo fundraising campaign that raised over $300,000 in two days, claiming a kid stole from her "18-month-old son's diaper bag at a park" and that her personal information had been doxxed online in response to the video of her saying the racial slur. At the same time, rumors started to go viral linking the man who recorded the incident, purportedly identified as Sharmake Beyle Omar, with a dismissed case of criminal sexual conduct from January 2022. The incident gained significant attention on social media as the viral video spread into early May 2025, spawning a divisive debate regarding the man's alleged previous accusations and Hendricks' fundraising campaign donations.

Background

On April 30th, 2025, TikTok^[1] user @dahab.soomaale (now private) uploaded a video of a Minnesota woman who allegedly said the N-word to a Black kid in a public playground, later identified as Shiloh Hendricks, confronting her for using the slur multiple times.

The video has since been deleted but was reposted on the same day by TikToker^[2] tizzyent. The video, in which tizzyent plays the censored exchange and discusses it (seen below), amassed over 10 million views and 1 million likes in two days.

Developments

GiveSendGo

On April 30th, 2025, after backlash received from the viral video, Shiloh Hendricks started a GiveSendGo^[3] fundraising campaign, which raised over $180,000 in 48 hours.^[4]

On May 1st, 2025, Reddtor^[5] u/New_Employee_TA posted a screenshot of the donations campaign (seen below), amassing more than 3,200 upvotes and 500 comments in a day.

As of May 2nd, 2025, Hendricks' GiveSendGo campaign was updated to a $1 million goal and had accumulated over $331,000 in donations.

Sharmake Beyle Omar Allegations

Shortly after the video of Shiloh Hendricks gained viral attention in late April 2025, many netizens started to share a rumor claiming that the man who recorded the incident was purportedly identified as Sharmake Beyle Omar, who was charged of 3rd- and 5th-degree criminal sexual conduct after being accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old teen in January 2022.

On May 1st, X^[8] user @1776General_ posted the earliest accusation about the man recording the video being Omar (seen below), writing, "God bless this based mother for defending her child from a Somali." The post (seen below) received more than 3 million views and 41,000 likes in a day.

According to an article by ABC6 News,^[9] the same one used by @1776General_ and many others on social media amid the controversy, the Olmsted County Attorney’s Office dismissed charges against Mohamed Hussein Omer and Sharmake Beyle Omar in March 2025.

Online Reactions

The viral video showing Shiloh Hendricks saying the N-word at the kid and the man recording the incident was shared widely across multiple social media platforms in late April and early May 2025, spawning debate and outrage regarding her donation campaign.

For instance, on April 30th, a post to the subreddit /r/worldnewsvideo^[10] sharing the clip of the altercation between the man and the woman received over 5,600 upvotes and 1,400 comments in two days (seen below). On May 1st, the campaign from Hendricks was posted to the /r/awfuleverything^[11] subreddit, receiving over 3,600 upvotes and 550 comments in 21 hours.

On May 2nd, 2025, TikTok^[6] user @auntkaren0 posted a video commenting on the $250,000 donations to Hendricks' campaign in more than 24 hours. The video (seen below) received roughly 52,000 plays and 4,400 likes in a few hours.

On the same day, X^[7] user @DougWahl1 posted a screenshot of a news article about Hendricks' controversy, writing, "MAGA has created a country where a woman can profit from using a racial slur on a special needs 5-year-old." The tweet (seen below) received more than 13,000 views and 350 likes in a few hours.

Search Interest

External References