Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

Nick Shirley’s Security Forced To Step In As Angry Somali Berates Him

Nick Shirley's Security Forced To Step In As Angry Somali Berates Him (Screenshot/YouTube/Nick Shirley)

Nick Shirley, the viral YouTuber who reports on alleged fraud at Somali-run daycare centers in Minnesota, released new video Wednesday showing his security stepping between him and an angry Somali man who repeatedly berated him during a confrontation.

Shirley posted a video in December showing several daycare centers in Minnesota that he identified as Somali-run, including one that reportedly received $4 million in public funding yet appeared to have no children on site. In Shirley’s latest video upload, his security team stepped in and positioned themselves between him and an angry Somali as the man confronted Shirley.

Video of the exchange shows a visibly agitated Somali man accusing Shirley of “sensationalizing propaganda” and attacking the Somali and Muslim communities for profit. Shirley rejected the claims outright, repeatedly saying that his reporting targets fraud, not race, religion, or ethnicity.

“I’m not attacking you guys. Let me tell you the reason why. Fraud is fraud. This has nothing to do with race. This is fraud,” Shirley said.

The confrontation intensified when the man accused Shirley of fueling anti-Muslim sentiment and claimed that Islamophobes weaponize Shirley’s reporting so that they can call for Muslims to be expelled from Minnesota.

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“When I go onto your comments, what I see is people that say, ‘We do not want Muslims here. Kick every single Muslim in Minnesota out of Minnesota,'” the man told Shirley. “You’re preparing for the Somali community to  maybe be taken to concentration camps just like the Japanese community.”

As the man moved closer, Shirley’s security team stepped between him and the YouTuber. The man insisted he was not touching anyone, while Shirley accused him of deflecting from the central issue.

“Islamophobes use your material. People who hate Islam use your material. They tell us, ‘We don’t want you here. Change the Constitution,'” the agitated Somali man said.

“I’m not saying I hate Muslims. We’re talking about fraud. We’re talking about fraud,” Shirley said.

The man countered by saying Somalis were singled out.

“Are we the only community that does fraud? Are we the only community that does this?” the man asked.

“Listen, see this isn’t a race issue. Listen, listen. This is about fraud,” Shirley said.

In a video published Dec. 26, Shirley said his reporting led him to at least 10 Minnesota daycare sites he identified as Somali-operated that appeared inactive despite receiving public funding. Shirley said visits to the registered locations revealed empty buildings or shuttered facilities rather than functioning child-care centers. Separately, federal prosecutors have charged more than 90 individuals, many connected to Minnesota’s Somali community, with siphoning more than $9 billion from taxpayer-funded social service programs.

Records cited in a Minnesota Star Tribune report show five of those providers received nearly $5 million from the program between 2018 and 2021, including roughly $1.5 million paid to Minnesota Best Childcare Center alone. Another provider, Sweet Angel Child Care in Minneapolis, reportedly listed a contact number matching one associated with Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s office.

State employees said in November that Walz bore direct responsibility for the failures that allowed the scheme to continue, accusing his administration of disregarding internal alerts and pushing aside whistleblower complaints. As scrutiny intensified, Democratic officials and state leaders publicly showed support for Somali residents, including Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who called the community vital to the city, and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, who appeared on Somali-language television while addressing the controversy.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/YouTube/Nick Shirley)