Trial Starts for White Mom Who Called a Black Child a Racial Slur at a Minnesota Playground

No, free speech doesn’t mean you can harass a autistic 5-year old child with racial slurs and go along your way

 Kate Amistoso, Emancipator

The trial of a White mom accused of using a racial slur against a Black child at a Rochester, Minnesota, playground earlier this year began Tuesday. 

The case gained national attention after the father of the 8-year-old victim posted a video of the incident. The video went viral on social media, as supporters condemned the actions of Shiloh Hendrix. Days later, Hendrix launched a GoFundMe and claimed that her and her family’s safety were at risk after her personal information, address, and Social Security number were leaked. According to local media sources, she raised $800,000 as of February this year. 

According to a criminal complaint filed in Olmsted County, the incident happened in April of last year at Soldier’s Field Park. The complaint states that the 8-year-old Black child, who was “profoundly and visibly autistic,” wandered off and took an applesauce pouch from a diaper bag that belonged to Hendrix. 

Hendrix proceeded to chase the child and called him the “N-word.” 

The child’s father filmed the rest of the encounter and confronted Hendrix about why she used racist language against a Black child with autism.

“So that gives you the right to call the child, eight-years-old, a n*****, the ‘N-word?’” the father asked in the video.

Hendrix replied by saying, “If that’s what he’s gonna act like.”

Immediately after the video went viral on social media, the Rochester Branch of the NAACP issued a statement. “This is a very serious situation, and we are treating it as such,” said Walé Elegbede, president of the NAACP’s Rochester Branch, in a statement. “A public park should be a place of joy and safety. What we witnessed in that video was vile, hate speech, dehumanizing, and racist. Since the incident surfaced, I’ve corresponded and spoken with legal representatives from our local branch, our regional NAACP Minnesota and Dakotas Area State Conference, and the National NAACP to determine appropriate next steps. Our children are sacred—and our community demands accountability.”

Hendrix is being charged with two counts of disorderly conduct. Jury selection for the trial began this week. She faces up to 90 days in jail, along with $1,000 fines for each charge.