Shocked shoppers call police on mother at Walmart after seeing her child in nothing but a diaper in freezing temperatures – before worker who filmed the shocking scene is 'fired for interfering'
Shocked shoppers were confronted by a mother who took her toddler son to Walmart wearing only a diaper in freezing weather.
The little boy shivered as he sat in the shopping cart at the store in Jackson, Mississippi, on Wednesday during last week's winter storm.
The temperature dropped to 37 degrees Celsius that day, but the child was not given the right clothes for the shopping trip.
Felicia Nicole, a Walmart employee who confronted the mother along with other customers, said she was fired after posting a video of the boy online.
The young woman said it was 20 degrees Celsius or colder when the mother and child entered, and the boy was wearing only a diaper, without a shirt, socks or shoes.
Shocked shoppers were confronted by a mother who took her toddler son to Walmart wearing only a diaper in freezing weather. This was after another customer put a jacket over the boy
The mother (left) continued shopping as usual, throwing groceries into the cart next to her son
She said that before her video started, another customer draped a black jacket over the boy after his mother refused to buy him anything.
At one point, the toddler visibly winced as his teeth chattered.
'What is wrong with you?' an older man asked the mother repeatedly as she grabbed groceries and threw them into the cart next to her son.
She turned and told the man to lower his voice, then pushed her trolley away and walked over to Felicia's camera.
Felicia and other shoppers said someone should call the police, but the mother seemed to say the police had been to her twice before.
“As long as you have hot water, a fire extinguisher…” she said, before pausing dramatically.
“If you come into the store fully dressed and your baby isn't…” Felicia replied.
'How many children do you have?' the mother shot back, and Felicia said she had one child when the woman turned and pushed her cart down the frozen food aisle.
A second video showed a friendly older customer, a woman on a mobility scooter, dressing the boy in a long-sleeved shirt and pants she had bought for him.
While she dressed the toddler, his mother stood next to the cart playing on her phone.
A second video showed a friendly older customer, a woman on a mobility scooter, dressing the boy in a long-sleeved shirt and pants she had bought for him.
While she dressed the toddler, his mother stood next to the cart playing on her phone
Felicia later posted an update to her TikTok followers confirming that police had been called to the mother.
'Yes, we called the police. I mean, why wouldn't we? Why wouldn't we?' she said, holding back tears.
“If you see a child being neglected, wear no clothes, just a diaper, no shoes, no socks, no shirt, nothing. Why wouldn't we call the police?'
Felicia said the woman asked her if she had a child, and she did, but he died.
Behind her, on the wall, was a photo of a small child lying in a hospital bed with a tube down his throat.
“If my child was alive, there's no way my child would be walking around there with no clothes on, just a diaper,” she said.
Replying to a comment on her video, she wrote: “Some people don't need kids! They have to tie her fallopian tubes and burn them.'
Felicia later said that hours after she posted the original videos, her manager called her and demanded she take them down — which she did.
Felicia Nicole, a Walmart employee who confronted the mother along with other customers, said she was fired after posting a video of the boy online
Felicia said in an update that the woman asked her if she had a child and she did, but he died. Behind her, on the wall, was a picture of a small child lying in a hospital bed with a tube down his throat
She was not scheduled to work last Thursday and Friday, and after reporting to work on Saturday, she was suddenly fired two hours before her shift ended.
“I took it upon myself to speak up for the best interests of the child. No, I didn't think about the consequences at the time. At that time, my main focus was on that innocent, poor child and getting him help,” she said.
“Now I'm unemployed because all I did was try to help and save that baby's life.”
A fundraiser to pay Felicia's bills while she looks for a new job has raised nearly $4,000.
Former Planned Parenthood director Dr. Abby Johnson was one of many viewers shocked by the videos after they were reposted to Twitter.
“It would be impossible for me not to grab that baby and hold it next to my body until it warms up and stops shaking. “If this woman treats him like this in public, imagine what happens to him in private,” she wrote.
“I hope her children are taken away and placed in a safe, loving home. So many families would be willing to give him that house, including ours.”
Jackson police have not responded to calls to confirm whether any action has been taken against the boy's mother.