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Cinnabon worker fired after racist outburst directed at customers goes viral

ASHWAUBENON, Wis. (AP) — A Cinnabon worker in Wisconsin has been fired after a racist outburst directed at two customers went viral, the Georgia-based cinnamon roll chain said.

Cinnabon posted a statement on social media that the worker, who it did not identify, was “immediately terminated” by the franchise owner over a “disturbing video” of the incident.

“Their actions and statements are completely unacceptable and in no way reflect the values of Cinnabon, our franchisees, or the welcoming environment we expect for every guest and team member,” the company added in a follow-up statement to The Associated Press on Sunday.

The video was posted on TikTok and showed a white, female employee cursing at and taunting the customers from behind the counter as one of them recorded the encounter. At one point she is seen on video uttering a racial slur and saying, “I am racist and I’ll say it to the whole entire world. Don’t be disrespectful.”

The employee also is also recorded giving an obscene hand gesture at customers and exchanging expletives with one of the persons at the store.

The TikTok user who posted video said the incident happened while she and her husband were taking a break from shopping Friday at a mall in Ashwaubenon, a suburb of Green Bay.

The customer said she ordered a caramel pecan cinnamon roll and had asked the worker to add more caramel as it didn’t appear to have enough.

She said she began recording after the worker snapped at her and derided her hijab.

An online fundraising campaign to support the customers described them as a “black Somali Muslim couple” that’s been “traumatized” by the incident.

A competing campaign to purportedly benefit the fired worker, meanwhile, has raised tens of thousands of dollars. That effort appears on the same Christian crowdfunding platform where hundreds of thousands of dollars were raised for a Minnesota woman who admitted to using a racist slur against a Black child at a playground earlier this year.

Malaysia bans social media accounts for children under 16 but questions remain

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Malaysia on Monday began enforcing rules barring millions of children younger than 16 from having social media accounts, joining a growing global effort to tighten safety protections. Not all families approved, and critics raised concerns about data protection and potential surveillance. Social media platforms with at least 8 million users in Malaysia, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, must implement age-verification systems and block users under 16 from creating accounts. Malaysia’s Communications and Multimedia Commission said age verification for existing users will be rolled out over the next six months. Users identified as under 16 will have a month to download or transfer data, including photos and videos, before restrictions or other actions are applied. Companies that fail to comply could face penalties of up to 10 million ringgit ($2.5 million). Parents whose children manage to bypass the law will not be penalized.
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