Woman accused of calling child racist slurs at playground begins trial
Rochester woman charged after racial slur
A woman accused of using a racial slur against a child at a Rochester, Minnesota, park after he took an applesauce pouch from her bag earlier this year is now facing charges in Olmsted County Court. The woman's outburst went viral on TikTok.
ROCHESTER, Minn. (FOX 9) - The trial of a woman accused of using a racial slur against a child at a park after he took an applesauce pouch from her bag at a Rochester playground is now underway.
Rochester playground racial slur trial
What we know:
Jury selection began this week for the trial of Shiloh Hendrix, 37, who is charged with two counts of disorderly conduct.
Hendrix has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine for each count.
Rochester playground slur incident
The backstory:
A criminal complaint filed in Olmsted County states that Rochester police responded to Roy Sutherland Playground near Soldier’s Field Park on April 28, 2025, and learned that a man had taken a cell phone video of an encounter with a woman, later identified as Hendrix, shortly after she allegedly engaged in a hostile and racist manner with a child at the park.
The video then went viral on social media, garnering millions of views and several reaction videos.
The complaint states a man told authorities he was at the park with his three children shortly after 6 p.m., adding that one of his boys was 8-years-old and has autism.
At some point while they were at the park, the child approached a diaper bag that belonged to somebody else, and took an applesauce pouch from it. The man saw it, and tried to get it from him.
The complaint states Hendrix also saw the boy take the pouch, and started chasing the boy, who went to the playground to get away from his dad and Hendrix.
Hendrix allegedly got angry with the boy, calling him a racial slur and causing the boy to freeze. The boy’s dad was afraid Hendrix would try to hit the boy, and grabbed the food from him.
Dig deeper:
A video taken shows Hendrix holding a child while being confronted by the man recording her.
The man, speaking out of the camera's view, asks Hendrix if she called another child at the playground the "N-word."
The woman begins walking away before turning around and calling the man the "N-word" and making an obscene gesture.
"He took my son's stuff," Hendrix said when the man pressed her.
"So that gives you the right to call the child, 5-years-old, a n*****, the ‘N-word?’" the man said.
"If that's what he's gonna act like," Hendrix said.
Hendrix was criminally charged on Aug. 26, 2025.
Rochester slur video: Rally held
A rally was held on Monday in Rochester, Minn. after a woman was accused of using a racial slur against a child at a playground in the city.
GoFundMe campaign
The other side:
In the days after the incident, Hendrix posted a crowdfunding campaign, saying her family was in great turmoil after her personal information was leaked online.
She said at the time she feared having to move her family for safety, and asked for donations to protect herself and family.
As of February 2026, the crowdfunding campaign had raised more than $800,000.