11 months ago
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When Chaya Raichik—the viciously anti-LGBTQ+ social media poster better known as Libs of TikTok—posts, threats and violence toward her targets follow. A number of instances of threats following Libs of TikTok posts have been widely reported, but a new Media Matters analysis shows it’s happening regularly. At this point, Raichik has no plausible deniability: She knows that when she posts about a hospital or school or library, claiming it’s “grooming” children or exposing them to inappropriate material, her followers are likely to respond with threats and harassment.
“Media Matters documented 25 institutions, events, and individuals who reported threats after being targeted by Libs of TikTok, and 8 who reported harassment — a total of at least 33 instances of threats or harassment.” All of those happened in 2022 or 2023. That’s a lot of threats and harassment for one person to incite in less than two years. Sometimes what follows is online harassment. Sometimes it’s doxxing. Sometimes it’s threats of physical harm, including bomb threats. There have been in-person disruptions of drag queen story hours or Pride events following Libs of TikTok posts, though it’s also possible that the Proud Boys didn’t need her inspiration.
