The mother of a nine-year-old boy bullied over his dwarfism has warned about unauthorised fundraising accounts set up using his name.
Stand-up comedian Brad Williams set up a legitimate GoFundMe page for Quaden Bayles on Thursday after the boy’s mother Yarraka shared a video of him crying and saying he wanted to die.
A few hours later Ms Bayles posted on Facebook saying this was the only fundraiser she had authorised and she was aware of ‘fakes’.
A search by Daily Mail Australia of the GoFundMe website found several pages relating to Quaden that had not been authorised by his mother.
The page featured a picture of Quaden and the words: ‘Hello my son has been being bullied as you can clearly see over the internet I’m just a tired mum.’
Sick scammers have set up unauthorised fundraising pages falsely claiming to raise money for a bullied nine-year-old with dwarfism (pictured)
Ms Bayles posted on Facebook saying she was aware of ‘fake’ fundraisers
US comedian Brad Williams (pictured) set up a GoFundMe page for Quaden Bayles on Thursday after the boy’s mother shared a video of him crying and saying he wanted to die
Nicola Britton, GoFundMe Regional Manager, said they have a zero-tolerance policy for fraudulent behaviour and were committed to being the safest place to give.
‘Our team of Trust and Safety experts work around the clock, interacting with campaign organisers, continually monitoring and verifying pages to prevent misuse.
‘All donations remain under our control until we are sure they will reach the right place. Before money is transferred to an individual, their personal information, including ID and banking information, must be verified.’
‘I want to fly Quaden and his mother to America, get them a nice hotel, and bring them to Disneyland.
‘This isn’t just for Quaden, this is for anyone who has been bullied in their lives and told they weren’t good enough.
‘Let’s show Quaden and others that there is good in the world and they are worthy of it.’
Mr Williams said that if too much is donated the excess would be given to anti-bullying charities.
By Thursday morning the page already had 1,700 donors.
Quaden’s mother Yarraka, from Brisbane, shared the distressing video on Wednesday after picking him up from school.
The schoolboy, who has achondroplasia - the most common type of dwarfism - told his mother: ‘Give me a rope, I want to kill myself.’
Quaden also scratched at his neck and said: ‘I want to die… I want to scratch myself.’
Since sharing the video, Ms Bayles has been inundated with kind messages of support from friends and strangers alike.
The Indigenous All Stars NRL team reached out to the family, inviting Quaden to walk them onto the pitch on Saturday night.
Quaden’s mother Yarraka, who is from Brisbane, filmed her son (pictured together) crying in the car after she picked him up from school on Wednesday and publicly shared the video on Facebook
They will take on New Zealand Maori Kiwis at CBUS Super Stadium on the Gold Coast.
The nine-year-old was snapped with NRL star Latrell Mitchell, who donned a South Sydney Rabbitohs jersey after signing with the club for the 2020 season.
Ms Bayles shared the video publicly on Facebook in a bid to raise awareness about the impact of bullying.
She said she normally tries to keep distressing moments such as this private but felt she had been left with no choice but to go public.
What is Achondroplasia? Achondroplasia is a disorder of bone growth that prevents the changing of cartilage (particularly in the long bones of the arms and legs) to bone. It is characterised by limited range of motion at the elbows, large head size (macrocephaly), small fingers, and normal intelligence. Achondroplasia can cause health complications such as interruption of breathing (apnea), obesity, recurrent ear infections and an exaggerated inward curve of the lumbar spine. People with dwarfism have a normal life expectancy. Source: US Department of Health
‘So can you please educate your children, your families, your friends because all it takes is one more instance… and you wonder why kids are killing themselves.’
‘This is the impact bullying has a nine-year-old kid who just wants to go to school, get an education and have fun but every single fricking day something happens.
As Quaden sobbed, Ms Bayles asked for help from anyone viewing the footage.
‘So is there any advice or support or anything that other parents have done?
‘I’ve got some good advice but I need more, I want people to know how much it is hurting us as a family,’ she said as her voice quivered. quaden
The mother did not go into specifics about the latest bullying incident, but previously said her son was called a ‘midget’ by his class mates.
‘I was so shocked. I honestly didn’t think he would even know what or how at six years old,’ she said.
The mother, an Aboriginal rights activist, said her son has made several attempts to take his own life.
‘I’ve explained to him that once you go, there’s no coming back, you’re gone forever, but he still kept trying,’ the mother said.
She also said Quaden has been affected by the death of his grandfather and his younger half-brother, who was stillborn.
She told the newspaper she was proud that she had spoken publicly about asking for help.