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You may not know Toya Graham’s name, but you might remember her pulling her son out of the Baltimore riots on Monday.

The proud mother of six talked to reporters on Tuesday about the viral moment. While everyone applauded Graham by naming her “Mother of the Year,” Graham says she didn’t want her only son to be another victim of police violence. The mother was seen hitting and grabbing her son after spotting him in the middle of the riots following the funeral of Freddie Gray.

“I’m a no-tolerant mother. Everybody who knows me, knows I don’t play that,” Graham told the network. “He knew. He knew he was in trouble.”

She also says she didn’t notice the cameras were rolling when she yanked him from the chaos. Out of the 235 arrests made overnight on Monday, 35 were juveniles.

“That’s my only son and at the end of the day I don’t want him to be a Freddie Gray,” she told CBS. “I was angry. I was shocked, because you never want to see your child out there doing that.”

After officials praised Graham for her actions, they also pressed other mothers to find their children. Graham says critics shouldn’t fault parents for not being on the front lines, because they’re too busy trying to provide for their children. Daughter Tameka Brown said her brother is happy their mom stopped him from acting out.

“She knows her son and picked him out. Even with the mask on, she knew,” Brown said. “She has always been tough and knows where we are at,” Brown said.

Hopefully Graham taught other moms a thing or two about protecting Black youth.

Check out more of what the mother had to say above.

SOURCE: CNN | VIDEO CREDIT: NDN

SEE ALSO: Does This Video Really Show A Mom Beating Her Son For “Rioting” In Baltimore?

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