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Nick Shirley vs HasanAbi: YouTubers engage in war of words over viral daycare scam video, ‘you botched it for clickbait’
Nick Shirley and HasanAbi clashed on social media over allegations of fraud at a Minnesota daycare, with Shirley accusing the facility of misusing government.
Famous YouTubers Nick Shirley and HasanAbi have engaged in a verbal exchange on social media regarding an alleged daycare scam that was exposed by the former.
On December 27, Shirley claimed that a Minnesota daycare had received nearly 2 million dollars in government funding, yet exhibited no apparent signs of operational daycare activities.
The 23-year-old investigative journalist posted a video on X featuring the “Quality Learning Center.” In the now-viral clip, he highlighted that the term “learning” was misspelled, the windows were obscured, and there were no signs of children or staff present. In a separate video, Shirley inquired with an individual at the daycare about the possibility of enrolling his child, but was seemingly denied.
“This is a prime example of the BILLIONS of dollars in fraud happening right now in Minnesota, this is one of the hundreds of “daycares” receiving millions of dollars from the government, this daycare (that can't even spell learning right) received $1,900,000 in tax-exempt funding from CCAP in 2025. This is just one of the 1,000's of fraudulent businesses operating in Minnesota,” he tweeted.
HasanAbi tears into Nick Shirley amid daycare video uproar
HasanAbi, Turkish-American YouTuber and Twitch streamer, responded to Shirley's post, which accused a Minnesota daycare of fraudulent activities, stating: “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??”
In a subsequent tweet, he remarked: “Bleak future of all media. Vigilante content that can be weaponized for racialized/ white nativist agitprop. Everyone’s gonna behave like the fake ‘pedo hunters’.”
Shirley replied to HasanAbi's tweets, referencing the controversy surrounding the streamer's use of a dog shock collar: “People like this commie literally shock their dogs and complain about America 24/7, and when someone ACTUALLY leaves their room to do something, wait for it...They then defend the criminals.”
Clapping back at Shirley, HasanAbi mentioned that he has journeyed across the globe and attended several protests, “but since I wasn't trying to storm childcare facilities with a camera crew screaming “show me the children now!” it doesn't count.”
“There's a proper way to conduct a thorough investigation, and you botched it for clickbait,” he added.
Netizens react
Meanwhile, several people commented on the heated exchange between Shirley and HasanAbi, with one lauding the American YouTuber, saying: “He did imperfectly what no one else was doing, and achieved the perfect result.”
“This was not a protest. These were empty daycare facilities getting reimbursed $172,0000,000 a year,” another commented.
“So, you’re more upset with the person exposing the fraud than the fraud itself?” a third user said.
