The administrator of a GoFundMe drive that has collected nearly $60,000 for bullied child-turned-viral sensation Keaton Jones has halted the drive after Jones’ mother, Kimberly Jones, was accused of racism.
Joseph Lam, the 37-year-old New Jersey man who initiated the campaign, said he didn’t know the family, but wanted to make sense of the situation and make sure everyone had Keaton’s interests at heart.
He said he had heard from “a lot of people with concerns” about whether the mom was racist, but added: “I’m more concerned with the kid.”
“I would like to do a college fund for the kid, it’s not the kid’s fault,” he told TheWrap.
He said he was still reeling from the suicide of a 10-year-old boy in his community when he first saw Keaton Jones’ video, and decided to start the campaign to help.
An update posted on the GoFundMe page said he’s “in touch” with GoFundMe “on how to proceed at this point.”
Prior to being put on hold, the fundraising drive had amassed more than $58,000 in donations, far surpassing the $20,000 goal that the two-day-old campaign had sought.
Lam is also trying to make sure he is in touch with the real Kimberly Jones. He said someone got in touch with him saying he was a family friend after he started the Go Fund Me campaign, and gave him the email of someone he said was Kimberly Jones.
Keaton Jones became a viral sensation over the weekend, after his mother posted a video of him describing bullying and harassment by his classmates. Jones’ heart string-tugging story drew widespread support, including from “Reading Rainbow” host LeVar Burton and “Captain America” actor Chris Evans, the latter of whom invited the boy to the next “Avengers” premiere.
After the younger Jones rose to internet fame, people on social media began circulating photos they said were posted to to the elder Jones’ Facebook page of people holding Confederate flags.
One unverified post attributed to the elder Jones, dated soon after the neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, declared, “Dear butt hurt Americans. If you aren’t bleeding, no bones are sticking out & you breathe, STOP crying! For the love, some folks clearly never picked a switch. And before y’all start talking to me about metaphorical, emotional, financial or historical blood & brokenness, Don’t. Join a group. #yallneedssomeporchtherapy #coffeewithJesus #somethin #FINE.”
Lam said he doesn’t know if the posts attributed to Kimberly Jones are real — and neither do the people accusing her of racism.
“You have ignorant people tearing the family apart and they don’t even know them,” he said.
In Monday’s update to the Go Fund Me page, Lam suggested that the elder Jones might have suffered from bullying herself by her detractors.
“THIS IS NOT ABOUT THE MOM!! However passing judgement on her before you know her is a form of bullying. Condemnation before evaluation is the ultimate form of ignorance,” Lam wrote. “I can’t even say for sure that any of whats being said is true. I don’t know the family personally and never claimed to have known them. This is about a kid who’s been bullied and not just one kid, Keaton, there are many unspoken cases about kids being bullied.”
He continued, “We have to be the voice for the voiceless. In the video I saw a kid crying not just for himself but for others. To me that’s a kid with a heart of gold and deserves praise. I’m hoping that we can turn the money into something good whether it be for private school or college fund. I’m in touch with GFM on how to proceed at this point. Thank you every one that donated.”
Tracking the Infinity Stones in 'Thor: Ragnarok' and the Marvel Cinematic Universe
As every Marvel movie fan knows, the thread that connects the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe from Earth to Xandar are the six Infinity Stones that will all come together when the Marvel heroes take on Thanos in "Avengers: Infinity War." Starting with "Captain America: The First Avenger," the Stones have been revealed one by one since 2011. If you need a brush-up on where each stone currently is and what it can do, we're here to help you out. (WARNING: Spoilers for "Thor: Ragnarok" ahead)
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The Infinity Stones were created at the dawn of the universe by cosmic entities who bent all of existence to their will. Each of the stones gives the user control over some element of the cosmos...provided that the user's body is powerful enough to withstand the stones' energy without getting vaporized. The six stones control one of the following: Space, Reality, Power, Mind, Time, and Soul. Each stone has a special nickname in the MCU.
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The Space Stone, a.k.a. The Tesseract, was left on Earth by Thor's father, Odin. It was first introduced in "Captain America: The First Avenger," as Red Skull used it as a power source for his evil plans. After Cap stopped him, the Tesseract was taken by SHIELD with the hopes that they could harness its power to protect Earth.
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Instead, the Tesseract became the impetus for Loki's invasion of New York in "The Avengers." After Loki was defeated Thor and his superhero pals, the Tesseract returned to Thor's home world of Asgard, where it is currently being used as a means to teleport between different planets.
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In "Thor: Ragnarok," we see the Tesseract again in Odin's vault on Asgard. Toward the end of the movie, Thor sends Loki to the vault to execute a plan that can defeat Hela. While he's there, Loki has a pointed moment walking past the Tesseract. We don't know for sure, but it seems very likely Loki didn't leave the Tesseract to get destroyed along with the rest of Asgard. He probably has it in his possession at the end of the movie. Which means...
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...The Tesseract, and thus the Space Stone, are probably currently in the possession of Thanos. In the mid-credits scene at the end of "Thor: Ragnarok," Thor, Loki and the rest of the Asgardians are aboard a spaceship bound for Earth. They're intercepted by Thanos' ship, the Sanctuary II. And in footage of "Avengers: Infinity War" shown at San Diego Comic-Con this year, there's a shot of Loki handing the Tesseract over to Thanos.
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The Reality Stone, a.k.a. The Aether, was introduced in "Thor: The Dark World" as the object that spawned a war between the Asgardians and an evil race of Dark Elves led by a tyrant named Malekith. Unlike other stones, the Aether had taken a liquid form that could suck the life force out of humans and other mortals. But those who could control it could use its power to turn anything in the universe into dark matter.
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With the help of Loki, with whom he made an uneasy truce, Thor was able to stop Malekith's plans to use the Aether to turn the universe into a dark matter realm ruled by his people. Since Asgard already had the Tesseract, it was decided that it was too dangerous for Infinity Stones to be close together for a long time, and the Aether was given to a man called The Collector for safekeeping. What Thor didn't know was that The Collector had plans to gather the Stones for himself.
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Unfortunately for The Collector, his plans were derailed after a visit from the Guardians of the Galaxy, who had arrived with a mysterious Orb they had planned to sell for a massive payday. They learned that the Orb contained the Power Stone, an Infinity Stone used by its creators to cast judgment upon worlds and destroy them with a single blow. Direct contact with the Power Stone will result in the holder being vaporized.
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And vaporization is exactly what happened to The Collector's assistant, who touched the Orb and caused a massive explosion. While The Collector held on to The Aether, most of his collection was lost while The Orb fell into the hands of Ronan, who planned to use its power to conquer and destroy any world he wished. The Guardians were able to defeat Ronan and placed the Orb under the care of their galaxy's top defense force, the Nova Corps.
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The Mind Stone was introduced in "Avengers: Age of Ultron" and was revealed to have been contained in Loki's scepter. It grants the user immense knowledge, the ability to control the minds of others, and can even bring about new life. After the Avengers retrieved the Scepter from HYDRA, Tony Stark planned to use its power to develop an A.I. strong enough to defend Earth from another otherworldly invasion. Instead, he created Ultron, who hatched an invasion of his own.
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To counter this, the Avengers used the Mind Stone again on Stark's computer companion, JARVIS. With the help of Thor's power, their experiment created Vision, a sentient android with the Mind Stone embedded in his head. Vision gave the Avengers the edge they needed, putting an end to Ultron's plans.
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The Time Stone was introduced in "Doctor Strange" and played a key role in the titular hero's development of his magical power. As you may guess, the Time Stone allows those with magical abilities to manipulate time like a Blu-Ray remote. The stone is held within a pendant called The Eye of Agamotto, which Doctor Strange uses despite warnings from Baron Mordo that the Eye is a form of magic that is far too dangerous to be wielded.
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Using the Eye to undo the destruction brought about by the dark deity Dormammu, Strange then trapped his nemesis in a time loop in which Dormammu would kill Strange again and again but would never conquer Earth. Strange only stopped the loop after Dormammu agreed to leave Earth. Afterwards, Strange placed the Eye back in storage, at which point his companion, Wong, revealed to him that he had been wearing an Infinity Stone around his neck.
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The final stone, the Soul Stone, has yet to be revealed. Though fans thought it could be tied to Hela, the villain of "Thor: Ragnarok," it didn't turn up in that movie. That could mean we'll see it in "Black Panther," somewhere in the super-advanced Earth nation of Wakanda.
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Then again, in the comics, Hela wields control over all the souls who reside in her domain and has made Faustian bargains with the living in exchange for their souls. We saw Hela raise the dead in "Thor: Ragnarok," but got no explanation of how that power works. There's also some speculation that, while Hela gets blasted by Surtur's sword at the end of the movie, she might not have died -- leaving the door open for her to resurface, potentially with the Soul Stone.
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It's also possible "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" has hinted at the reveal of the final Infinity Stone. The movie includes a post-credits scene in which Ayesha, High Priestess of the Sovereign, talks about using her race's technology to create a powerful being she dubs "Adam." This is a reference to the extremely powerful Adam Warlock, a character who derives much of his incredible abilities from the Soul Stone in the Marvel Comics.
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There's speculation that this Adam Warlock may or may not have the Soul Stone. Marvel boss Kevin Feige and "Guardians" director James Gunn have said that Adam won't be in "Infinity War," even though he's key to the conflict in the comics. And Feige says we won't see Adam until "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3," which takes place after "Infinity War." But all of this could also be misdirection -- we've seen that from Marvel Studios before.
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Here’s where all the Infinity Stones in the Marvel films is located, including one that resurfaced and might change hands in “Thor: Ragnarok”
As every Marvel movie fan knows, the thread that connects the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe from Earth to Xandar are the six Infinity Stones that will all come together when the Marvel heroes take on Thanos in "Avengers: Infinity War." Starting with "Captain America: The First Avenger," the Stones have been revealed one by one since 2011. If you need a brush-up on where each stone currently is and what it can do, we're here to help you out. (WARNING: Spoilers for "Thor: Ragnarok" ahead)