Michigan Daycare Allegedly Refused to Care For 18-Month-Old Because the 'Black Products' in Her Hair Made Her 'Stink' (2025)

A Black Michigan mother is seeking justice after learning that her toddler was the victim of racial discrimination while in the care of workers at a daycare center she attended. According to Lansing, Mich.’s CBS affiliate WLNS, Kendra Smith first learned that her daughter Braelynn was being mistreated after receiving a call from Child Protective Services (CPS) in 2023.

Smith says she was contacted by someone at CPS who told her the agency was investigating claims of discrimination against staff members at tinkrLAB Daycare who refused to feed, hold or change Braelynn’s diapers because she was Black.

“One of the providers in the facility said that Braelynn stinks because she’s Black, and it’s probably because of the Black products that we use in her hair,” Smith told WLNS.

Although she was told that CPS was conducting an investigation, Smith says when she tried to get more information, she hit a brick wall as no one from the agency would return her calls. According to WLNS, Smith was only able to get her hands on CPS’ records of their visits to tinkrLAB after filing a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

Melissa Rabideau, tinkrLAB’s owner, posted a lengthy statement on Facebook blaming the entire situation on a combination of “errors in managing, staff errors in understanding appropriateness in the work environment and A LOT of miscommunication.” Rabideau insists that the accused staff members are no longer employed by her company.

“The comments by prior staff members were NEVER the stance of my business or myself and were not brought to my attention,” she wrote. “I regret the way the entire situation was handled. I have learned so much, put so many protocols in place, so many policies and accountabilities to ensure there is no question of our standards and expectations. I have taken trainings, put my team through trainings and am regularly evaluating where we are at,” she wrote on March 29.

But some online are questioning why it took the school so long to speak out.

“2 years later, really?? You did nothing at the time of the incident and allowed those 2 employees to continue to work there, but now 2 years later you’re doing some “reflecting “ ? Too little, too late lady,” wrote someone in the comments.