McDonald's Employee Shamed Online By Customer Earns Community Support

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By  Dominick Suzanne-Mayer

Now that just about everybody walks around with a high-definition digital camera on their person at all times, taking pictures of strangers has become an unsettling social norm. While sometimes this can lead to a fun meme or an affirming reminder of human kindness, a lot of the time it just results in deeply inconsiderate people deciding to publicly shame others while knowing absolutely nothing about their personal circumstances.

But fret not: this particular episode works out for the best, even if it starts off terribly. Atlanta news station WSB-TV reports of an incident involving Simon Childs, a 21-year-old father working at a Georgia McDonald's. Childs, who was homeless at the time the photo was taken, was sleeping on a table at the McDonald's location between shifts when a customer decided to photograph him and make a complaint to management. The woman then posted the photo and her thoughts about the employee on Facebook:

In speaking with Childs, WSB-TV found a far more inspiring story than the one the woman in question attempted to tell. Childs, who worked at the location while raising a young son, had recently lost his mother as well, and had fallen on hard times. However, in the days since the photo was initially posted, Childs has received an influx of assistance from the surrounding community, from rented hotel rooms to a free haircut to "piles of donated diapers for his son, supplies and clothes." Childs observed of the kindness that "I didn't think the community would even care enough to do that, but they care." He has received multiple job offers as well.

The unnamed woman spoke to a WSB-TV reporter, and reportedly claimed off-camera that "she never intended to shame any one person in particular and she posted it in a private group."

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