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When former kindergarten teacher and TikTok creator Arielle Fodor joined the recent fundraising Zoom call for presidential candidate Kamala Harris, “White Women: Answer The Call,” she assumed her short speech would act like a helpful primer for women who didn’t know how to handle the contentious world of speaking about politics online. Instead, her simple statement — including phrases from her popular TikTok satire account — has sparked a major backlash from right-wing media, and Fodor says the “perfect storm of toxicity” is proving her point exactly.
“People are losing their minds because Kamala Harris is on the ticket, and they are holding on tight to a lot of really harmful and bigoted ideas,” Fodor tells Rolling Stone. “Public school teachers are under attack right now. Public education is under attack. So I think I just [happen] to be at the intersection of that.”
While kindergarten teaching and aggressive right-wing politics might not seem compatible, this isn’t Fodor’s first time receiving backlash for her videos. She began her TikTok account, @mrs.frazzled, in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, making short clips and humorous skits about kindergarten, like captivating the attention of an unruly class during virtual sessions, and how to cope with teacher burnout. But after a chance joke with some friends — “Wouldn’t it be so funny if we talked to our partner like they were a kindergartner, or a person with road rage like they were a kindergartner?”— Fodor’s biggest videos became “tongue-in-cheek” clips about speaking to former President Donald Trump in an affected “teacher voice.” Following their success, she quickly added more political content to her repertoire, using her teaching satire to poke fun at the absurdity of large political events or contentious decisions — building a devoted following 1.3 million followers deep.
“[My content] exposes the absurdity of things that people are prejudiced against,” Fodor explains to Rolling Stone. “When you treat them like a child, a tongue in cheek kind of talking down to them, the things that some people spend their time and hatred on lose [their] power.”
Fodor was invited to speak on the fundraising call for her humorous way of combining comedy and online activism, even being introduced as someone who could “gentle parent” the Zoom participants through the election. “We are here because BIPOC women have tapped us in to stand up and get involved this election season,” she said on the call. “As white women, we need to use our privilege to make positive changes. If you find yourself talking over or speaking for BIPOC individuals or, God forbid, correcting them, just take a beat, and instead, we can put our listening ears on.” But right-wing pundits and far-right commentators quickly took her speech and signature phrases out of context, calling Fodor condescending and racist
Since clips of the Zoom call began circulating, one clip gaining over 6 million views on X (formerly Twitter) right wing creators have subjected Fodor to targeted harassment, calling her “insane,” “racist” and saying she “shouldn’t be allowed near a public school classroom.” X owner Elon Musk even commented, calling the video “next-level cringe,” while others targeted Fodor’s interracial marriage to an Indian American man. Fodor says people blatantly misunderstanding both her comedy and speech is frustrating, but what’s been harder are the personal attacks she and her family have received.
“The most common thing I’m getting is that I am racist because I’m speaking for BIPOC individuals and saying I know what’s best for them, and I’m so confused by that, because my whole speech was about not talking over people,” she says. ”My interracial marriage is something that has always come up with this extremist right wing group.They’ve terrorized my in-laws, people sent the cops to their house. I cannot bear to have them treat the most important people in my life this way.”
Shannon Watts, organizer of the Zoom call and founder emeritus of Moms Demand Action, an anti-gun-violence organization, tells Rolling Stone that Fodor has been unfairly “singled out” since her speech, something she sees as both unfounded and an example of rampant misogyny in political spaces.
“Our call generated $11 million [for Harris] and it broke records for Zoom attendance. There’s always an attempt to play down the success of women, and to single them out like they are with Arielle,” Watts says. “I learned very early on that women’s opinions are not appreciated, especially by the right-wing and extremists, and it’s just an unfortunate byproduct of being public about your opinion. I’m really proud of Arielle because she’s put herself out there in public. The backlash was swift and probably painful, but I really appreciate her standing up.”
Since the Zoom, Fodor has been a constant on right-wing sites like Fox News, and Evie Magazine, with contributors equating her to failures in the public school system, accusing her of being an acting plant or calling her a cultural appropriator fixated on race. But she tells Rolling Stone the experience has only made her more determined to share her views online.
“I don’t want to rethink my content. I always knew that this was a possibility talking about the issues that I talk about, especially human rights. My audience often doesn’t feel seen because their family members or people in society make them feel small,” she says. “[People] called me ugly, they’ve called me childless, they’ve called me single. They’ve painted a whole picture in their minds. That doesn’t bother me. And I don’t want to stop because this is proving the point to me. This is why my content is necessary.”
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