What is Racial Cinnabon controversy? GoFundMe seeking $45000 launched for Black Somali couple following Bay Park mall incident

A Cinnabon outlet in Ashwaubenon, Wisconsin, has terminated a female employee over a viral video. The fired female worker was accused of racially abusing a Somali couple. 

After a clip of the incident surfaced on social media, a GoFundMe campaign also went live. A Green Bay, Wisconsin, resident, Sabrina Osman, has created the page to help her cousin, whom the Cinnabon employee allegedly abused. The organizer wrote in the campaign description: 

“My cousin and her husband (black Somali Muslim couple) were out shopping and decided to stop at Cinnabon for a quick treat. As soon as they walked in, they could tell the atmosphere was not welcoming at all because of this workers facial expression and attitude.”

Osman claimed that the dispute happened over the caramel in a food order. The employee allegedly made a problematic remark toward a female customer’s hijab, following which she started recording. The video shows the Cinnabon worker hurling the N-word towards the customers and saying, “I’m racist.” 

The employee points her finger toward the camera and said: 

“I’m racist and I’ll say that to the whole entire world. Don’t be disrespectful.” 

The woman customer replied: 

“You ruined your life by the way [referencing the racist remarks].”

As the recording continues, the Somali man said: 

“Oh, you’re talking about respect? You’re fired from this place motherf***er, you’re not gonna be working here.” 

As the Cinnabon employee shows middle-finger gestures on camera, the Somali woman customer interjects and asked: 

“What's wrong with you?” 

The worker responded: 

“What the f*** is wrong with you? You f***ing ugly b****. Get the f*** out of my space.” 

This couple from Somalia walked into a Cinnabon to buy food and the employee started making fun of the woman’s hijab so they took out their phone & started recording then she called them the N word and admitted to being a racist! She continued to say derogatory things to them too pic.twitter.com/h1CrdEcfA4

— Suzie rizzio (@Suzierizzo1) December 6, 2025

The GoFundMe organizer claimed that her cousin was left traumatized after the incident. The fundraiser has a goal of $45,000, as Osman wrote: 

“My cousin is traumatized and is afraid to be outside now.... the racism is getting out of hand nowadays
if there's any lawyers in Wisconsin that can help with this case please email me. We need to put a stop to this!”

A GiveSendGo fundraiser emerges to help the fired Cinnabon worker 

The viral incident has sparked debate online, with some supporting the Somali couple and others defending the former bakery employee’s action. @Suzierizzo1, an X account with over 137.5K followers, also tweeted about the incident, to which Cinnabon replied: 

“We’ve seen the disturbing video from the Cinnabon bakery in Ashwaubenon, WI, and we do not condone this behavior. The former employee was immediately terminated by the franchise owner. Their actions do not reflect our values or the welcoming experience every guest deserves.” 

Following the confirmation about the employee’s firing, a popular conservative X handle, Tom Hennessy, launched a GiveSendGo campaign. The fundraiser description read: 

“Meet Crystal: hardworking White mom doing her job at Cinnabon. Two Somali customers decide to make her shift hell with intimidation.Instead of banning the offenders and backing their employee, Cinnabon fires Crystal to keep the nons happy.” 

https://t.co/27lgC5Saeh

— Tom Hennessy (@Tomhennessey69) December 6, 2025

Hennessy added: 

“We’re not letting this slide. Funds go to making sure Crystal lands on her feet after this betrayal. No White person should lose their job for refusing to be harassed by Somalians.”

The fundraiser has raised over $53,000 and is nearing its goal of $109,110, with more than 1,874 donations.