A 9-year-old Kansas City Chiefs fam wore a headdress and face paint to the Super Bowl.
After the boy, Holden Armenta, was falsely accused of wearing blackface during a November Chief’s game, a GiveSendGo campaign was launched to bring the child to the Super Bowl.
“We are rallying support for Holden Armenta, a 9-year-old Kansas City Chiefs fan, who has been wrongfully accused of ‘blackface’ for dressing up as a Native American during a game. Holden and his father, Bubba, joined ‘Jesse Watters Primetime’ to set the record straight – they are members of the Chumash tribe from California, and their intent was never to disrespect any Native Americans,” the fundraiser’s description reads.
“Despite the family’s clarification, a sports reporter, Carron J. Phillips, persisted in labeling Holden’s innocent gesture as an act of hatred. The accusations have caused significant distress to Holden and his family, tarnishing their reputation and leading to disrespectful comments worldwide,” the campaign continued, adding, “Our goal is to send Holden to the Superbowl, allowing him to experience the joy of being a dedicated Chiefs fan without the shadow of false accusations.”
Wouldn’t have been possible without this fundraiser. https://t.co/tDmWjqghpx
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) February 11, 2024
Following the accusatory piece from far-left sports outlet Deadspin, the boy’s parents threatened to sue the outlet.
Shannon and Raul Armenta hired Clare Locke LLP in December to demand a retraction and threatened further action against the author Carron J. Phillips, Deadspin, G/O Media, and Great Hill Partners.
“It is not enough to quietly remove a tweet from X or disable the article from Deadspin’s website,” a letter read. “You must publish your retractions and issue an apology to my clients with the same prominence and fanfare with which you defamed them.”
BREAKING: The parents of 9-year old Holden Armenta are threatening to sue Deadspin for slandering their son by saying he wore “Black face.”
Do it! 🔥
Shannon and Raul Armenta have hired Clare Locke LLP, demanding that they issue a retraction of the viral story.
It gets better:… pic.twitter.com/gJShq1MFKW
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) December 4, 2023