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Murhaf Hamid, 11, took part in Majblomman, Sweden’s oldest charity’s yearly campaign to eliminate child poverty in the country.
He planned to sell the “majblommor” flower pins to earn enough money to go out to eat with his pals because youngsters are permitted to keep 10% of the money they generate as well as any tips. He eventually broke a fundraising record.
According to Aljazeera, when Hamid first started, several people were unpleasant and requested him to leave the area, leaving him discouraged.
Leila Orahman, a family friend, saw Hamid’s rejections and decided to publish a social media post about him, which quickly went viral.
“I’ve shared a lot of posts before, but nothing’s ever gone this viral,” she told AFP, adding that the attention the story was getting was about “so much more than just his sales”.
“It’s also raising awareness for the whole situation with a boy who was born in Sweden almost 12 years ago and his family’s (asylum) application still being processed,” she remarked.
The post went viral after Hamid’s digital fundraising campaign received more than 3.2 million kroner ($223,200). In addition, the youngster earned 112,000 kroner ($10,830) in tips, surpassing the charity’s fundraising record and becoming a viral phenomenon in the process.
The charity’s general secretary, Christine Henell, told TT Newswire that the sales were “completely unbelievable” and that they had “never seen anything like it” because youngsters typically raise approximately $100.
Despite the fact that Hamid was born in Sweden, he is an asylum seeker and thus does not have a residency permit. His parents have been denied Swedish residency numerous times, yet the family cannot be deported to Ethiopia.
Racist remarks directed toward Hamid drew even more attention to his campaign, including from Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who stated anyone who made racist remarks should be “ashamed.”
According to reports, he was invited to the Swedish Parliament and the Town Hall in Malmö, Sweden’s third-largest city.
The 11-year-old activist told Sweden’s state network SVT that he “wanted to buy a residence permit” with the money but realized “it’s not possible.”
As a result, he plans to spend the money on a phone, shoes, and clothes, he says.
The experience of selling so many flower pins “boosted my confidence in myself, that I can cope with more things in life,” he said.
