A family of four was enjoying a day out together in Portland, Maine when a white man yelled a racial slur at them before speeding off.

The family consisted of a black mother and a white father who were with their nine-year-old daughter and 23-year-old son.

The man was in a car filled with a group of young white men when he screamed 'Hey n*****s!' at them on Friday and drove away.

Several bystanders witnessed the incident, including a local news reporter for WCSH 6 and WLBZ 2, Jackie Ward.

She shared her account of the story on Facebook, as a 'reminder for us to be kinder to each other.'

The story has since caused a stir in Maine - shocking some residents of the state.

News anchor Jackie Ward (left) shared the story of Shay Stewart-Bouley (right), a blogger who writes about race, and her family when the racial slur was shouted at them on Friday. She said she shared her account of the story as a reminder to be kinder

The mother, Shay Stewart-Bouley who runs a blog called Black Girl In Maine and writes about race, has told her story of how the incident unfolded that day.

She wrote in her blog: 'As a mixed-raced family in a white space, the reality is that anytime we leave our house as a family, we risk incurring the wrath of the ignorant and hateful.

'To partake in the joys of the first treats of spring can turn ugly without notice and, sadly, a visit to Maine’s most populous city yesterday was the day when the ugly became personal and my nine-year-old daughter learned that there are people who will never know her essence but instead will reduce her to nothing more than a n*****.'

Ward who was with in the Old Port when she watched the incident, and said in the moment she had become frozen and was unable to comprehend what was happening.

She wrote on Facebook: 'Yesterday in the Old Port, an adorable family of four was walking down Fore Street enjoying the day, popping in and out of stores along with everyone else in downtown Portland.

'I was waiting outside of a store with my dog when they were walking on Fore Street. Suddenly, a man driving by screamed the n-word at them as he sped off.

As the girl's brother chased after the car, Ward said she saw the child become visibly upset.

She wrote: 'What happened next is what made me the most sad. As the dad crossed the street to see if he could see how far his son was running, the little girl started getting visibly upset with what was going on.

'But the mom remained calm and stern. She told the girl her brother is a grown man who can stand up for what he believes in. "People are going to use that word and you need to know how to stand up for yourself."

Ward shared the story on Facebook (the post above) which went viral and prompted Stewart-Bouley to write a blog post with her account of the racist incident

After the man shouted the slur, Stewart-Bouley's son (above) ran after the car filled with anger after 'enduring such language with regularity as a grown man' his mother said

'My heart broke for that little girl as she harshly learned how our society has such a long way to go when it comes to racism.'

After sharing her post, several readers asked if anyone traced the car or got the license plate number, while others asked Ward if she took action in the moment.

Stewart-Bouley wrote on Ward's post that she was upset following the incident but that was not the time and place to be emotional.

'I have lived in Maine 13 years now, I write about race and I head up an anti racism organization Community Change Inc in Boston.

'In that moment, my only concern was the safety of my children specifically my son who after spending his childhood in Maine and enduring such language with regularity as a grown man is no longer willing to have his humanity denied.'

Stewart-Bouley wrote: 'I was upset but that was not the time and place to be emotional'

She added in her blog post that while she was grateful for Ward's observations she was saddened that she was not comfortable enough following the exchange to come over to the family and ask if they were okay.

'Racism is a system, and that silence upholds that system even when we don’t believe we are actively creating harm,' wrote Stewart-Bouley.

In a follow-up post on Sunday, Ward hit back at critics clarifying that her intentions with sharing the story was to remind people to respect one another, while addressing the questions surrounding what she did during the incident.

She wrote: 'First, I'm glad so many people are talking about a real issue in Maine, but I also want to clarify a few things.

'For those people questioning my motives, I didn't share the story for personal attention or to try to stir up controversy.

Stewart-Bouley wrote in her blog that she was saddened Ward did not feel comfortable enough to ask if the family was okay. Ward wrote a follow-up post on Facebook apologizing for her lack of action during the incident while clarifying her intentions

'I was trying to make a positive out of a terrible incident by opening people's eyes to the fact that these incidents do still happen and reminding people to respect one another.'

She added: 'I understand now that my inaction was hurtful to the family and for that I'm very sorry. It was not due to a lack of outrage or sympathy but simply that I didn't know whether the family would appreciate someone interjecting themselves into the situation.

'I thought that the way I could help would be by bringing awareness to it by writing about it.'

As for Stewart-Bouley and her family, she said on Friday during the car ride home the mood of the day had been destroyed.

She said her family was reminded that the world can be an utterly ugly place.

As her daughter asked if they could move away, she told her 'ugly can live anywhere'.