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The video, boosted by Vice President JD Vance and tech billionaire Elon Musk, quickly racked up millions of views.
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The impact was swift: DHS and the FBI ramped up their presence in the state, and federal funding for child care in the entire state was frozen.
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The Trump administration’s demands are the latest step in a yearslong saga that started with investigations into theft of government funds in Minnesota under the Biden administration.
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The viral video and cascade of investigations have presented real turmoil for the Somali community – already the target of years of vitriol from the president and from Republicans – and for child care providers.
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At least one Somali-run day care, which was not featured in Shirley’s video, was broken into and vandalized in the aftermath, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune.
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The Council on American Islamic Relations called for an investigation of possible bias in the incident, which they said “raises serious concerns about the real-world consequences of anti-Somali, anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim hate speech circulating online.”
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Some licensed child care centers have received “harassing or threatening communications” since the scandal, the Minnesota Department of Children, Youth, and Families said in its bulletin to providers.
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Several day care providers told CNN they have faced an influx of calls asking about enrollment, hours of operation, and availability which do not seem to be coming from genuinely interested parents and distract from their work.
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“It’s just random calls, extra things that we don’t need to focus on,” said Kassim Busuri, who owns a day care near Minneapolis. “We need to focus on our children that we care for.”
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And the ongoing funding freeze poses uncertainty for child care providers and the families they serve.
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“We have thousands of families wondering if they’re going to be able to be able to get the care that their kids need, if they’re going to be able to go to work next week,” Minnesota Rep. Carlie Kotyza-Witthuhn, co-chair of the Children and Families Committee, told CNN over the weekend.
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“We have child care providers and small business owners who rely on the work of those parents, not knowing if they’ll be able to keep their doors open, depending on how this freeze proceeds.”
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The explosive impact of Shirley’s video seems to have inspired self-styled investigators in other states with significant Somali populations, too.
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Videos have popped up showing other content creators trying, like Shirley, to enter child care centers – and using their locked doors as evidence they are committing fraud.
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It is not unusual for child care centers to lock their doors and to deny entry to unexpected visitors, especially if they are filming.
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The mayor of Columbus, Ohio said in a statement he was aware of the videos and the state has strong safeguards to prevent theft of government child care funds.
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“Actions that disrupt licensed childcare operations or create fear in these spaces are inappropriate,” read a statement from Mayor Andrew Ginther’s office.
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In Washington, Attorney General Nick Brown said his office has received “reports of home-based daycare providers being harassed and accused of fraud with little to no fact-checking.”
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“Showing up on someone’s porch, threatening, or harassing them isn’t an investigation,” he wrote on X. “Neither is filming minors who may be in the home. This is unsafe and potentially dangerous behavior.”
