Updated Thursday, October 8, 2015.
By now many may be aware of a beautiful little boy named Cayden. In case you aren’t aware, Cayden was subjected to horribly racist comments made about him from one of his mother, Sydney’s co-workers. Gerod Roth using the alias Geris Hilton took a picture of Cayden while he was at work with his mother one day and posted it to his Facebook page where he and his friends then proceeded to make racist comments about Cayden. Comments such as calling him “Toby”, “Kunta Kente”, “sambo” and “feral” with one of Geris/Gerod friends “stating that she didnt know that he was a slave owner” or that he got Cayden from the Black market. Geris/Gerod initially made the post on September 16, 2015 unbeknownst to his mother. He then went to work everyday speaking to and smiling in Sydney’s face while making these horrible comments behind her back. In one screenshot someone took Geris/Gerod made up terrible lies about Sydney and Cayden that has gone viral along with the picture.
For the record Cayden has never been abandoned and he is neither deaf nor mute. He is a beautifully, loving happy 3 1/2 year old boy who is loved by his family.
I became aware of all of this when a post came through my Facebook newsfeeds on Thursday night. I was appalled at what was being said about this beautiful little boy. I immediately wanted to know who HE was. A search revealed that Black Twitter was already on the case with finding Geris/Gerod’s and his friends’ employers so instead I put my focus into finding out who the child and his mother was and after making several posts that night I was put in contact with Sydney. I reached out to her in order to help give a voice to her and her son…and I learned that #HisNameIsCayden.
Since then Geris/Gerod has lost both of his jobs. One under the name Geris at YourEDM and the other under the name Gerod at Polaris Marketing Group.
One of the commenters on Geris/Gerod’s post, Emily has also lost her job as well. The others on the original racist post have either gone into hiding or have hidden info in their “about” sections. One in particular, Baron O’Malley is a very proud racist who has made it his business to make more racist comments on my page and even has made an appearance on Cayden’s grandmother, Susan’s page. He has no decency or morals when it comes to how to treat a child and he doesnt seem to care… he seems to think the pain that this has caused to Cayden’s mother is funny. I dont know how or in what world would making slave jokes about a toddler could ever be considered funny. This is a blatant example of how post racial this country is NOT.
In the wake of all the negativity that has surrounded this story… love and positivity was born. The overwhelming love and support for Sydney and Cayden has come pouring in. She and her family are very grateful for the support she and Cayden have received. Many people have asked how they can send gifts to Cayden in support of or for his 4th birthday on October 28th. One woman out of Detroit, MI, Jaulon Peoples has offered to make Caydens birthday cake (he personally requested a Ninja Turtle cake), Sydney’s best friend created a gofundme for Cayden’s college fund, and Sydney’s supervisor, Michael Da Graco Pinta who was very disturbed by all of this and who terminated Gerod Roth over his racist comments has agreed to have all gifts for Cayden’s birthday be sent to Polaris Marketing Group.
Please click on the image to donate to Cayden’s College Fund
Please send gifts for Cayden to: (remember his birthday is Oct. 28th)
ATTN: #HisNameIsCayden
Polaris Marketing Group, 1900 Century Place NE suite #210, Atlanta, GA 30345
Imagine that in 20 years when little Cayden is all grown up he will know that there were horrible people who told lies about him and used his image for hate but that there were thousands of people who overshadowed that hate with their unconditional support and love for him. THAT is the part of this story we want Cayden to know. He is loved. #HisNameIsCayden
We Love You Cayden!!
Polaris Marketing Group updated their Facebook status Tuesday evening to clarify that Geris Hilton was not terminated from their company because of his Facebook posts.
See the post below:
Ife's Island 
Comments on: "#HisNameIsCayden …not Toby…not sambo #HisNameIsCayden " (79)
Beautiful kid. This hatred need to stop. Love is what we need. The truth is, hatred ALL stems from fear…. And I’ll leave it at that. We all our living on one planet and bleed the same color….
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Yes! Everyone stop and listen to lhilaire1!
We need more love in this world 🙂 Fear isn’t going to help these people accomplish anything. All of these people stepping up and being amazing to Cayden and his mother melt my heart 🙂
I agree completely. I’m sick and tired of the hatred and the ignorance. I have raised my kids to be color blind. They come home from school and tell me about racist comments being made and they get so upset about it. Why can’t all parents raise their kids to be color blind. If they did maybe this horrible cycle would end.
Well said. He’s a handsome little man! This hate won’t stop till we’re all one color. Then what will they have to complain about? “your lighter then me, or your darker then me”? I’m not to good at expressing words. Hope you understand what I’m trying to say.
BTW, as if it matters, I’m white!
I hope that sorry son of a b***h got wat he get comi g to all of them he’s a handsome little boy and if that was my son I would be in jail good job mom keep loving ur son
And what kind of a man attacks a 3 year old baby? This is America so that guy can hate whomever he wants but a baby? Really? This guy is not a man, he is what everybody thinks he is. A pathetic little bigot that’s stuck in a changing world and it scares him so he lashes out at anything that he fears and in this case it\s a 3 year old. The guy is disgusting.
Well said.
What a beautiful little boy Cayden is! And what a wonderful mother he has! Every time I get mad about that ex-coworker of yours and his ignorant band of followers, I will think about Cayden’s beautiful smile and let that uplift me.
This is a beautiful child and those things should have not been said about him. Black is beautiful. When you pull the color card it only makes you look like an idiot. Love thy neighbor no matter their gender or race….The world is very sad. I am a teacher and I teach all race kids even some that are mutes and I love them ALL!!!!
I love that you’ve taken to WordPress with this, I use mine, kourtneyblack.WordPress.com , to vent publicly as well. Cayden deserves the best, just as every child does, regardless of race. I’m glad you approached the topic so well, letting us know what led up to and after the situation. I and several others have spoke out as to how being white at times like these, the ignorance of some is highly embarrassing to others. I will definitely be following you! Thanks for the great post! I’ll definitely be reblogging!!!
I think the surname Roth is Jewish; you would think that Gerod Roth would be more sensitive to such disgusting behavior.
ROTH is not necessarily a Jewish surname. Please don’t assume this schmuck is Jewish. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roth_(surname)
I was thinking the exact same thing Mary Lou when I reflected on the surname.
The hatred coursing off these individuals keyboards against this innocent little child is disturbing. These are very, very disturbed individuals in my opinion.
It breaks my heart to read this. No human deserves to be the brunt of racist remarks. He is beautiful, his Lil face is so cute. How could people make these remarks? I’m heart broken
Cayden is beautiful and has a wonderful mom and people to love them both. I don’t know you but may God bless you and keep you up lifted safe in his arms.
Reblogged this on Claricha Explains It All and commented:
That little Black boy who was the recipient of unwarranted hate by racist social media thugs, his name is Cayden.
Hello, Cayden. You have a beautiful smile that shows a lot of personality.
This Baron O’Malley is a demon, don’t expect anything to stop. Satan and his imps do what they do.
Baron O’Malley and these other demons remind me of Andrew Breitbart, you see where he is now! There are Devine Laws, you sow the wind and reap the whirlwind. Sit back and watch life.
Oh God! Turning this to something political. Andrew Breitbart exposed people like Anthony Weiner. He’s nothing like Baron O’Malley.
Conservatives and Liberals agree that Baron O’Malley is trash…As would Andrew Brietbart. Get off of your high-horse wealthylady. Nobody likes somebody who connects political dots to everything…ESPECIALLY when there are no real dots to connect.
As the father of a mentally challenged son, I don’t use these words regularly, but I will for you: You are retarded!
The usual Inbred name calling response. You are the reason brothers and sisters shouldn’t reproduce. And you idiots hollering about free speech, is that not political Goober?
Also, if you are such a wealthy lady. You had better put some money into this fund and get this cute little boy to college.
Put your money where your mouth is and stop using this to attack dead people that you disagreed with politically.
I agree, LuthTrey. People like “wealthy lady” are so brainwashed by the MSM that they can’t see that racism can exist anywhere no matter what the political party is. I’ve personally known hardcore liberals who are blatantly racist. One of those persons happens an uncle of mine. Do research on the Democratic party and find out what kind of dirt they’ve been involved in. It would shock those so devoted to that party. Of course many of them would deny it or sweep it under the rug. It’s hard for the brainwashed to believe their heroes can be so corrupt.
“One of those persons happens TO BE an uncle of mine.”
Gerod Roth is a low life! he should be ashamed of himself. But the way black people are treated in this country…can’t say I’m surprised. We are still not looked at as full human beings. It’s been that way since we got off the salve ships. They will never see us as equal to them.
I cannot speak for everyone, but I see all races as equals (I am white). Just know that we are not all the same.
That’s interesting to hear from a white person. You must be an anomaly.
He is such a sweet and beautiful little boy. My love and support go out to him and his beautiful Mom. It just disgusts me that any grown adult(s) could be so hateful towards a child and to do it behind their back is cowardice. It is time this country moved past racism. The color of our skin should never matter. We are all human beings. We live, breath, feel, hurt and love. I can only imagine the pain Cayden’s Mom felt when she learned of this. As a mom of 3, it breaks my heart for her, but it is so wonderful to see so many surround her and Cayden with love and support!
oh my god! was that an iron man teddy bear! This is the coolest kid on the planet!
I am so SORRY this piece of crap did this to you and your son… He is more than beautiful… he is such a bright shining light. Gerod Roth deserved to lose his job and i hope this follows him for a long time to come. Please don’t believe all white feel this way…PLEASE…I have to 2 biracial grand daughters who are beautiful and we are all a loving family black & white together it does not matter …what matters is LOVE…Yes there will always be people like Gerod Roth..I wouldn’t want that scum bag around my babies either. Just don’t let this man take the prospects of love and family of white people from you. I grew up with black and white people in my life that is why I feel the way I do. we have to take a chance and open ourselves up to each other …Yes we chance getting hurt…You may also find we are more alike than we are different.
boots to asses!!!!!
I really thought that the comments were fake. How can people say that? Its a picture of a obviously well taken care of child with some man. So how can so many people be so mean? I am shocked, disgusted. I am so sorry.
Reblogged this on Jamaican Dreamer.
I hope every single one of those IDIOTS get what they deserve! NO child should EVER be used to spread such vile hatred! Many blessings to Cayden & his family!
That person was just a mean troll! They are around, unfortunately. Don’t give him one more thought. Your little boy is a delightful, beautiful sweetheart and a blessing from God.
Cayden, you’re a sweet, beautiful boy. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise, and NEVER let the inbred, ignorant haters win.
This is so disturbing! Gerod Roth is a ignorant jackass and the extremely racist comments by Baron O’Malley are sick and indefensible. I hope that Ms. Jade sues Gerod Roth for everything he has and will have. I believe it is also a cyber crime to use a child’s photograph for heinous purposes. Lock the idiot up! If anyone knows this Baron asshole – tell him to watch his fat racist ass. Sorry for the language – this just upsets me so. God bless little Cayden and his mother and family. You never deserved this and I hope that nothing like it will ever happen again. Shout out to Polaris Marketing for their strong support & decisive action for the Jades. Peace & Love to all
Beautiful child. It breaks my heart that there are people who look at him, and are unable to see that this is an innocent child, but think ravist thoughts instead.
Also, it baffles me whenever someone uses “freedom of speech” as their defense whenever there are social repurcussions. Did any government entity go after them? No, so their freedom of speech is already being protected. Freedom of speech does not mean a green light to verbally attack, assault, or abuse others. Freedom of speech does not mean a green light to use fighting words to incite conflicts (which is actually a crime). These people have no understanding of how the law works. Freedom of speech also does not mean you have the right to cause emotional distress in others.
And for those who say, “The guy [Geris/Gerod] didn’t do anything wrong!”
You know he did do something wrong, you just think that if you say otherwise often enough, it’d be true. He contributed to that hateful conversations with his comments. To those people, I want to say that I feel sorry for you, for your worldview is so limited and narrow, and for the fact that you grew up in an environment so devoid of love, empathy, and sympathy, that you were never taught the basic laws of engagement.
God bless you and your lovely child. No ugly words can take away that love!
Thank you, Sydney, for rising above this shocking and disgusting wave of hatred that was pointed at your beautiful son. You’ve shown these soulless beings the meaning of God’s love and forgiveness. I’m more often than not embarrassed to be Caucasian these days! Peace and love to you and your boy ❤
This broke my heart and made me cry. As it should. Because we should never be so desensitized that we do not care about the evil behind this type of behavior.
I’m very pleased with the outpouring of support for Cayden. I hope that people translate this into their daily lives and into the children (and adults) they see and interact with every day. I can appreciate the desire to send him birthday presents, but I wonder if it would be better to “spread the love” to as many children as possible? It would be really neat if, for every birthday present Cayden receives, there was another child who also received a present, who also knew they were loved and supported.
how could he have 2 jobs in 2 different names? Wouldnt that require 2 different IDs and social security numbers needed? And isnt that quite illegal?
Cayden is a beautiful little boy. Neither he nor his mom deserved any of those comments.
What a beautiful child! Difficult to understand why someone would find it necessary to ridicule him.
Love the response and that most people in this world are full of love and support. Those who are clinching onto their absurd and skewed views of humans based on a ridiculous belief that melanin is somehow indicative of character will eventually die out….I believe this to be true. I have great hope for the future of our people. “Our” people being ALL human beings. That sweet boy will know love, acceptance and pride in who he is because his family and friends across the globe have shown him the greatest gift we can give to each other who may be different than themselves; tolerance. Mother Theresa said it best: “If we judge people, we have no time to love them.”
Taking a stand against racism is the right thing to do. Never just lay down to it.
I will never understand why people can’t just BE NICE! Hate does nothing but hurt. It does not matter what color someone’s skin is, what religion they believe in, what their sexual orientation is, we are ALL members of the human race, and every single one of us deserves to be treated with love, dignity and respect. Just BE NICE and the world would be such a beautiful place!
God Bless y’all. Praying for peace and serenity for y’all and hoping this does not have long lasting negative effects on either mother or child.
I can’t believe a person could say such things about such a beautiful child. What those people did is disgusting. I can’t wrap my head around how anyone can say such things about a child. I am glad that the company did the right thing by firing him. Your son is beautiful and you are a wonderful mother!
What many people don’t understand is that “Freedom of Speech” guarantees that you won’t be prosecuted by the government for stating your opinions. It does not mean freedom from consequence.
This guy learned that lesson the hard way.
As a white man I am embarrassed. As a human I am devastated. Cayden is beautiful. As an EDM junkie I know that our community promotes love and harmony and I hope you find peace in all our love for you and Cayden.
As I white man, I am embarrassed. As a human I am devastated. As an EDM junkie I know that our community promotes love and harmony. May you find peace in all the love and harmony we have for you and Cayden. He is beautiful.
This is such a strange thing – an innocent child destroyed in words by complete strangers. So happy to see all the positive support now. God can make something great come out of something bad! 🙂
Is.. Is no one going to comment on the hypocritical irony of “You are not being LOVING and ACCEPTING? We’re gonna hunt you down and get your ass fired, motherfucker!”
I in no way condone the horrible things that were said, and have zero interest in trying to defend the fellow… But if your brand of ‘love and peace’ involved ferreting out and firing people you disagree with, you have no moral high ground. It’s just meeting intolerance with intolerance. There are a higher roads, and none were taken here.
I really hope your family pays more attention to all the love and support and not the hatred racism is nasty your son Cayden is very cute handsome young boy.
My god, that’s really awful, some people ought to be ashamed of themselves … hopefully happier days are ahead !
Cheers
Don Charisma
Someone has to explain to me why racists believe freedom of speech only applies to them. Yes these losers have the right to say what they wish on social media environments. They do not however have any right to a job and potentially represent a corporate entity while espousing such views. They are also not free to speak as ignorantly as they do absent rebuke, as the public has free speech rights as well. So Baron’s “mind your business” remarks are just as moronic as his belief that he could compel anyone to do much more than laugh at his apparent ignorance.
I am so sorry that people are so ignorant in this world.It is sad that this child had to be treated in this way.Thank you for sharing this.He deserves better than to be treated so disgustingly by adults.Sending our love from Pennsylvania.
I’m proud of this company for doing what is right, and of Cayden and his mom for being a great family. Shame on people who would make such nasty comments about this beautiful child, a gift from God, as all children are.
Reblogged this on kimberlybeforeiwasborn and commented:
Such callousness, hatred and ignorance is heartbreaking and shocking for sure… but results in a truly remarkable outpouring of light for this child and his mother. Focus on the light and the love. Peace.
[…] viral after screenshots began being circulated outside the photographer’s social network. The hashtag #HisNameIsCayden was created in solidarity with the boy’s mother, and today it was one of the top trending […]
Beautiful, precious child!
[…] viral after screenshots began being circulated outside the photographer’s social network. The hashtag #HisNameIsCayden was created in solidarity with the boy’s mother, and today it was one of the top trending […]
@ Tammy – Very well said.
[…] the hashtag #HisNameIsCayden, supporters of the family rallied online to draw attention to ongoing […]
Racism/White Supremacy has no boundaries.
Cayden is simply beautiful! He’s a downright handsome lil guy! Kudos for spreading awareness about Cayden and his mother instead of the heartless fool who chose to make insane remarks about such a loved lil boy and his family. High remarks for Polaris Marketing Group as well!
[…] the photo with the hope of contacting the boy’s mother, Colorlines reports. Eventually, Detroit-based community activist Ife Johari reached out to the boy’s mother Sydney Shelton, and launched #HisNameIsCayden to […]
Such a beautiful story about a beautiful little boy. So glad the guy who said all the stuff about Cayden is fired. Cayden is a gorgeous little boy who knows nothing about hate. Hope he never has to feel it. Thanks to his mother he will grow up a well adjusted young man. God bless you both
Sad that the FB comment from Miss Alie Parra comes from a Mexican Women.
He is soooooooo adorable.. what a beauty he is. I mean purely handsome. I too have a BLACK son who is 7 yrs of age and this reminds me of how this society is, they pretend like we are all as 1.. but the reality is.. we are not. I plan on moving far away from Amerik when the time permits. Until then I shall protect myself, just as u have.. GOD will always bless lil Cayden and his mommy 🙂
What makes it so sad is that the folks throwing insults can’t even spell. Grammar matters.
[…] The viral image soon inspired the trending hash tag #HisNameIsCayden. […]
What a beautiful little boy! So sad that there are hateful people in this world that would use his beautiful face to mock and shame. Cayden will grow immensely from this experience and become a strong, loving young man. Good job, mama!
P.O.S got what he deserved,a loss of a job! There needs to be MORE white people losing jobs so the rest will learn to respect the offspring of Kings&Queens!
[…] Sydney Jade shared several pictures of her and Cayden on her Facebook page. She also made a statement about the incident in a blog post. […]
This angers me. Desensitized fools don’t belong here. Please, do not attack a child, or anyone for that matter. It’s really dumb and is not worth it. If one hates on the Internet, a wave with 20 times the strength will arise and drown them. Someone as despicable as this baron o’Marley fellow should rethink their life choices, claiming that it is acceptable because “the 3 year old does not have Facebook.” I’ve seen racism in my 13 years on earth, but nothing this lifeless. Of course the child does not have Facebook, he is 3. Hopefully karma catches up to this baron fool. Poverty stricken community? Excuse me, but we all know that black people are in no way poorer than white people. We challenged authority to gain be allowed to vote and sit on buses. Our jobs don’t matter more than yours like yours does not matter more than ours. We fought for the right to work for crying out loud. We were oppressed. You have all the doors open for yourself yet you try to close them for a 3 year old. I hope you realize that it does not matter that he is black. It could have been towards white kid and the results would be the same.
God bless all families that live trough this and let them persevere to a brighter future. AND IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING, IT IS NOT MUCH BETTER IN CANADA!😡