The video is only a few seconds long, but it has now pulled an entire community – and the internet – into a fight over racism, accountability, and who deserves public sympathy.
As FOX 11 reporter Tony Langfellow explains, a confrontation at a Cinnabon stand inside Bay Park Square Mall in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, has gone global, with tens of millions of views across X, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram.
The fallout now includes two competing GoFundMe campaigns: one for a Somali couple who say they were targeted with racist slurs, and another for the Cinnabon employee who was fired after she hurled those slurs on camera.
A Viral Confrontation In A Mall Food Court
Anchors Mark and Michelle introduced Langfellow’s segment by reminding viewers that FOX 11 first reported the story on Saturday, shortly after the TikTok video exploded online.
The clip, recorded at the Cinnabon stand, shows a white employee directing the N-word at a Somali couple, Langfellow reports. She then goes further, openly calling herself a racist.
According to Langfellow, the confrontation happened Friday at the Cinnabon kiosk in Bay Park Square Mall.
What would usually be a quick stop for a cinnamon roll instead turned into a public argument that now has national attention.
Langfellow says the video also shows the employee flipping off the couple with both middle fingers, continuing to throw derogatory comments in their direction even after they warned her that she was “ruining her life” and would be fired.
It is ugly, overt racism, and there is no way to sanitize that.
Two Fundraisers, Two Very Different Messages
Langfellow reports that two GoFundMe campaigns have sprung up in direct response to the incident – and that they are “competing against each other.”
One was created for the Somali husband and wife who recorded the video. The other was set up for the fired Cinnabon worker, whom the fundraiser identifies only as “Crystal.”
According to Langfellow, the GoFundMe for the Somali couple identifies one of them as Farhia Ahmed and says it was created by a cousin of the family.
The campaign states that money raised will go toward legal fees and describes the effort as a “fight against racism,” though Langfellow notes it is still unclear what specific legal action is being considered.
At the time of his report, Langfellow says that fundraiser had pulled in more than $4,600 toward a stated goal of $45,000.
Those numbers are modest compared to the campaign for the Cinnabon worker.
Langfellow reports that the fundraiser for “Crystal,” described as the former Cinnabon employee and identified in the GoFundMe as a white woman, had raised more than $110,000 – surpassing its $109,000 goal.
That alone says a lot about how quickly online outrage can be redirected into support, even for someone whose behavior is on video and widely condemned.
What The Fundraiser For The Worker Says
The description of the GoFundMe for Crystal is part of what makes this story even more charged.
Langfellow notes that the campaign claims the money will help her “land on her feet” after losing her job.
But the fundraiser text also goes further, stating that “no white person should lose their job for refusing to be harassed by Somalians.”
That line, as Langfellow quotes it, flips the script and paints Crystal not as the aggressor but as a victim – not just of a workplace dispute, but of “Somalians” as a group.
That kind of language is not subtle.
It takes an individual confrontation and turns it into a racial grievance narrative directed at an entire immigrant community.
Whatever one thinks about internet pile-ons or corporate terminations, racism and slurs are not “refusing to be harassed.”
They are racist behavior, full stop, and the video shows that clearly enough that there’s no need to speculate about tone or interpretation.
To his credit, Langfellow keeps his reporting grounded in the facts of what’s on tape and what the fundraisers actually say.
But the quote he pulls from the worker’s fundraiser speaks volumes about how some corners of the internet are choosing sides.
What Started The Exchange, According To The Somali Family
Langfellow reports that, according to the GoFundMe set up for the Somali couple, the confrontation began when the Cinnabon employee made comments about the Somali woman’s hijab.
That alone is a sensitive and deeply personal target – a religious garment tied to identity and faith.
The fundraiser’s account says that after these comments, the couple called the worker an “idiot,” followed by an expletive, and told her she was “ruining her life” and would be fired.
From there, the employee escalated further, unleashing the N-word, calling herself a racist, and giving them both middle fingers, as seen in the video.
Langfellow stresses that the Somali-side GoFundMe also frames their effort as part of a larger “fight against racism” and specifies that the money is meant for legal fees.
What exact legal route that might mean – civil action, complaints, or something else – remains unclear.
That lack of detail is one of the reasons FOX 11 reached out to the organizer, Langfellow says.
So far, he reports, the station has not heard back from the cousin who created the fundraiser.
From the outside, it underscores how quickly ordinary people can be thrust into the spotlight.
A couple who went to a mall to buy pastries now finds themselves at the center of a racial incident watched tens of millions of times, being asked to explain legal strategy while dealing with the emotional blow of being called a slur in public.
Cinnabon Responds And Tries To Distance Itself
Corporate response came fast.
Langfellow says Cinnabon issued a statement to FOX 11 over the weekend, after the video spread online.
The company stated that it was “aware of the deeply troubling video” involving a former employee at the independently owned Cinnabon bakery in Ashwaubenon.
According to Langfellow, Cinnabon said the individual seen in the video “was immediately terminated” by the franchise owner.
The statement goes on to say that the worker’s “actions and statements are completely unacceptable and in no way reflect the values of Cinnabon, its franchises, or the welcoming environment it expects from every guest and team member.”
It is the kind of language we have heard from other brands after viral incidents, but in this case the company backed it with real action: the firing happened right away.
Still, Cinnabon can’t fully control what happens next.
The brand is now attached to both the viral clip and the fundraisers, whether it likes it or not, and it’s a reminder that employers are judged not just by their policies but by the conduct of the people wearing their logo in public.
Questions Still Unanswered – And A Clear Line On Racism
Langfellow says FOX 11 is still trying to reach both sides of the story.
He reports that the station has requested an interview with the creator of the Somali couple’s GoFundMe, hoping to clarify what legal steps are being considered and to better understand what happened before the camera started rolling.
He also says FOX 11 has reached out to Crystal, the former worker, to hear her version of events and ask whether she regrets using a racial slur.
So far, there has been no public response from her either.
Those unanswered questions – what exactly was said before filming, what legal claims are being pursued, whether the worker feels any remorse – all matter for the full picture.
But they don’t change what’s plainly visible in the video.
A service worker targeted a customer’s hijab, used the N-word, labeled herself a racist, and followed up with vulgar gestures.
As Langfellow’s report makes clear, that is the behavior everyone is reacting to – not some hidden off-camera detail.
There is room for debate about online shaming, about how quickly the internet can turn someone into a symbol, and about whether dueling GoFundMes are a healthy way to process public outrage.
But there really should not be any debate about whether racial slurs are acceptable.
They aren’t.
Not in a mall, not in a restaurant, not on a sidewalk, not on a video that ends up on TikTok, and not in a society that claims to value basic human dignity.
What this case shows, as Tony Langfellow carefully documents, is how one moment of naked racism can ripple outward into a national argument over victimhood, accountability, and identity – and how, even then, people will still line up on both sides with their wallets open.
Taking a stand against racism starts with refusing to sanitize what happened in that Cinnabon line, even as the fundraisers and the narratives fight it out online.
Ed spent his childhood in the backwoods of Maine, where harsh winters taught him the value of survival skills. With a background in bushcraft and off-grid living, Ed has honed his expertise in fire-making, hunting, and wild foraging. He writes from personal experience, sharing practical tips and hands-on techniques to thrive in any outdoor environment. Whether it’s primitive camping or full-scale survival, Ed’s advice is grounded in real-life challenges.
