What's Up With All The Somali Daycare Memes? Nick Shirley's Controversial Minneapolis Daycare Fraud Allegations Explained

Controversial YouTuber and independent journalist Nick Shirley has inspired heated discourse on social media after posting a video exposing allegedly fraudulent daycare centers in Minneapolis.

The video quickly went viral across YouTube and X / Twitter, getting support from people like Elon Musk and J.D. Vance, criticism from streamer Hasan Piker and inspiring a whole lot of memes.

So what exactly are the allegations by Nick Shirley, are they legitimate and how are people using them in memes? Here's what you need to know.

What Is Nick Shirley's 'Somali Daycare Fraud' Video?

Nick Shirley dropped his Somali daycare fraud video the day after Christmas 2025.

The video, which quickly gained millions of views on YouTube and X, investigates allegations that some Somali-run daycare centers in Minneapolis, Minnesota are not actually daycare centers, but are simply posing as daycare centers to get millions of dollars in funding from the U.S. government.

The video comes amidst a wave of FBI investigations into Minnesota's Somali community, who have been accused of defrauding the government of hundreds of millions of dollars through fraudulent businesses related to autism therapy billing, housing stabilization, disability services and more.

In the video, Shirley visits several of these daycare centers. He finds no children at any of them, is refused entry into the businesses, and is turned away when he asks if he can enroll his son Joey in the daycares.

Reactions to the video have been mixed. Many have taken Shirley's side and defended his claims, while others believe that the evidence shown in the video is not enough to confirm that the daycare centers are fraudulent.

The video inspired FBI Director Kash Patel to make a post ensuring social media users that the FBI is investigating the alleged fraud in Minnesota, while leftist streamer Hasan Piker criticized Shirley's methods in a post reading, "idk what kind of fraud Somalis in daycares are doing but I think it’s a separate crime to try and storm w a camera into a daycare w kids in it?"

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 26, 2025

How Is 'Somali Daycare Fraud' Used In Memes?

While the allegations have inspired a lot of heated arguments between the left and right on social media, they've also inspired a lot of memes. Many of these memes make jokes about getting rich by running a fraudulent Somali daycare, using meme formats like "Mom, How Did We Get So Rich?" to drive the point home.

Other popular memes include a post about trying to run a fraudulent Somali daycare center and getting frustrated when kids actually sign up, and memes referencing viral moments in Shirley's video, such as Shirley trying to enroll his fake son Joey in the daycare centers.

What Are Some More 'Somali Daycare Fraud' Memes?

For the full history of Somali Daycare Fraud memes, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.