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@libsoftiktok
Libs of TikTok's Twitter avatar
Born	Chaya Raichik
Nationality	American
Years active	April 2021 – present
Website	Libs of TikTok on Twitter

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Libs of TikTok is a right-wing Twitter account owned by former real estate worker Chaya Raichik that reposts content created by liberals, leftists, and LGBT people on TikTok and on other social media platforms, often with hostile, mocking, or derogatory commentary. The account, also known by the handle @libsoftiktok, has over 1.3 million followers as of August 2022, and has become influential among American conservatives and the political right. Raichik claims to run the account alone full-time and lives in Los Angeles. Libs of TikTok's social media accounts have received several temporary suspensions and one permanent suspension from TikTok.

Reactions to Libs of TikTok have been divided among journalists, academics, political commentators and others. The account has been described as promoting harassment against and criticizing teachers, medical providers, and children's hospitals and spreading false claims and hateful commentary against marginalized groups. Libs of TikTok uses the term groomer as a pejorative for LGBT people, supporters of LGBT youth, and those who teach about sexuality to children. Fans and supporters of Libs of TikTok describe the account as simply reposting content showcasing "sex and gender ideology" that was already publicly available.

Libs of TikTok was originally the personal account of Chaya Raichik, who has continued to be the account's owner. Created in November 2020, the account became Libs of TikTok in April 2021. Libs of TikTok began receiving media attention in August 2021, including from conservative commentators and news outlets. Raichik remained anonymous until her identity was revealed in April 2022 by both software developer Travis Brown and Washington Post journalist Taylor Lorenz. Some conservatives accused Lorenz of doxxing as a result, while others defended Lorenz from criticism. The Washington Post and Lorenz have stood by their reporting on Libs of TikTok. In August 2022, Libs of TikTok received substantial media attention after falsely claiming that gender-affirming hysterectomies were being provided to minors at the Boston Children's Hospital and at the Children's National Hospital. This resulted in a harassment campaign against both hospitals, including bomb threats. However, there is no conclusive link between Libs of TikTok's posts and the bomb threats.

Account history

Inception and original content (November 2020 – June 2021)

The account was created in November 2020 as a personal account with the handle @shaya69830552, and later @shaya_ray. According to The Daily Dot, "in its early days, primarily existed as a reply account that routinely showed up in the comments of prominent conservatives on Twitter." Before becoming the Libs of TikTok account, Raichik downplayed the severity of COVID-19, promoted the conspiracy theory that the 2020 United States presidential election was stolen from Donald Trump through election fraud, and made posts showing that she was present at the 2021 United States Capitol attack. Raichik criticized the law enforcement officers at the Capitol, tweeting "hey were rubber bullets from law enforcement. 1 hit right next to me." Raichik also tweeted that she did not enter the Capitol building like "a few crazy people" had and called the breach "mostly peaceful". Raichik later downplayed the attack, claiming it was peaceful compared to a "BLM protest". In early 2021, the account had less than 1,000 followers.

The account's handle was later changed to @cuomomustgo, focusing on demanding the resignation of the then-Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo. The account also promoted efforts to recall the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. By March 2021, the handle had changed to @houseplantpotus, a parody account tweeting as a houseplant in the White House of U.S. President Joe Biden. @houseplantpotus later became @libsoftiktok on April 19, 2021, promising to "help you find your daily dose of cringe".

In May and June 2021, before and during Pride Month, Libs of TikTok started posting anti-LGBT commentary, including her first tweet using "grooming" as a pejorative for LGBT people.

Raichik also ran the now-defunct Twitter account @NewYorkIsShitty.

Media attention (August 2021 – April 2022)

In August 2021, podcaster Joe Rogan began promoting the account on The Joe Rogan Experience, leading to a large increase in followers. Prior to being promoted by Rogan, Libs of TikTok had amassed around 65,000 followers. That same month, lawyer and Republican Party operative Grant Lally filed a trademark for Libs of TikTok as a "news reporter service". The account has been promoted by Donald Trump Jr., by journalist Glenn Greenwald and by political commentators Tucker Carlson, Jesse Watters and Laura Ingraham; has been featured in the New York Post, The Federalist, The Post Millennial, Fox News and in other right-wing news outlets; and its posts have been retweeted by Meghan McCain.

In April 2022, Seth Dillon, CEO of conservative Christian satire website The Babylon Bee, announced a partnership with Libs of TikTok.

Prior to being revealed as the account creator, Raichik was interviewed anonymously on several occasions, during which she boasted that posts from the account led to the firings of several teachers. Raichik encouraged followers to join local school boards in order to remove teachers who teach about gender and sexuality. Raichik told the New York Post that "I don't do this for money or fame" and "I'm not some politician or blue-check journalist."

Identity revelation (April 2022)

The account's creator endeavored to stay anonymous, appearing in newspaper and television interviews under the condition of anonymity. However, in April 2022, details began to surface about Libs of TikTok's identity. Software developer Travis Brown researched the history of the Libs of TikTok account and named Chaya Raichik as the account's creator. According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) donation records, Raichik donated to Republican politicians in 2020 and 2021.

On April 19, 2022, The Washington Post published an article by journalist Taylor Lorenz which further publicized the identity of Raichik, noting that she was an Orthodox Jew who worked in real estate in Brooklyn. These details were scraped from early iterations of the Libs of TikTok Twitter account. The online version of the article initially included a link to Raichik's real estate license, although this was later removed.

The article was controversial, mostly with American conservatives, who accused Lorenz of doxxing, antisemitism for mentioning Raichik's religion, and hypocrisy for having previously spoken out against online harassment. Raichik also accused Lorenz of doxxing and told the New York Post that she "will never be silenced". According to The Times of London, "supporters of Lorenz meanwhile pointed out that Raichik's followers were only too enthusiastic about doxxing when it came to teachers being smeared as paedophiles." In a tweet, Lorenz said that her "whole family was doxxed again this morning ... trolls have now moved on to doxxing and stalking any random friends I've tagged on Instagram."

Some conservatives said Lorenz's visitation of the home of Raichik's relatives was harassment. Journalists responded by noting that visitations are a standard part of reporting procedure.

Lorenz and The Washington Post have stood by the reporting and Lorenz accused conservatives of trying to "sow doubt and discredit journalism". Cameron Barr, a senior managing editor at The Washington Post, wrote in a statement that the Post "did not publish or link to any details about personal life". Some commentators, as well as Libs of TikTok, disputed this because the real estate license that the article initially linked to included a home address.

Libs of TikTok gained about 200,000 new Twitter followers in the day after the article was published.

Account suspensions (April – September 2022)

Twitter

Twitter has temporarily suspended Libs of TikTok three times. On April 13, 2022, Libs of TikTok was suspended on Twitter for promoting "violence, threats or harassment against others based on their sexual orientation or other factors such as race or gender". The tweet that resulted in this suspension featured an image of a transgender woman, whom Libs of TikTok referred to as male, and claimed that the woman had been using female locker rooms. The tweet was later deleted by Libs of TikTok.

On August 27, 2022, Libs of TikTok received a one-week no-posting suspension from Twitter for "hateful conduct" and Twitter issued a warning that the account could be permanently banned. According to The Washington Post, the tweet that resulted in this suspension featured "Raichik again misidentif a person's gender." The tweet was later deleted by Libs of TikTok. In response to the suspension, Libs of TikTok said that "Getting suspended by Twitter has only made me realize my biggest mistake. I only called one hospital I should have called dozens because I promise you Children's National is not the only one. I promise to learn from my mistake and uncover more of what our Big Tech overlords don't want us to know. I will do better in the future."

According to NPR, "Libs of TikTok appears to have evaded outright bans by coming right up to the edge of the platforms' rules but not breaking them", adding that the account "does not explicitly encourage followers to threaten anyone, and typically uses its target's own words, sometimes stripped of context, to imply wrongdoing." According to Joan Donovan, research director at Harvard's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, deleting controversial tweets before a platform takes action is a common tactic for digital actors spreading disinformation. Libs of TikTok has used this tactic to avoid additional penalties from Twitter while still making an impact on a large online audience.

According to The Washington Post, Twitter employees in internal Slack conversations have been urging Twitter to take more action against Libs of TikTok, with one employee arguing that it is "only a matter of time" before Raichik's posts result in someone being killed. In a Slack conversation, a Twitter executive asked employees to "refrain" from discussing if an account should be suspended, arguing that the conversation could get leaked.

Other platforms

Libs of TikTok had an account on TikTok itself, but it was suspended for violating TikTok's community guidelines in March 2022.

On May 27, Libs of TikTok was suspended by Instagram. That same day, the account suspension was reversed. A Meta spokesperson told The Daily Dot that "this account was automatically disabled following multiple copyright complaints" and that "we investigated further and found an issue following one of the complaints, so we restored the account."

On August 17, Libs of TikTok was suspended by Facebook for violating the platform's "community standards"; according to Raichik, she was told it was "permanent". After less than a day, the account was reinstated. Facebook said that the account was suspended in error. LGBT organization GLAAD criticized the reinstatement of the account.

On August 30, activists launched a campaign to pressure e-commerce platform Shopify into dropping Libs of TikTok. The activists have claimed that Raichik's store violates Shopify's acceptable use policy, which bans hateful content, as well as goods or services that lead to harassment, bullying, or threats. As of September 1, over 4,300 users have submitted reports to Shopify to drop Libs of TikTok. In a statement, Shopify defended Libs of TikTok, saying that "We host businesses of all stripes and sizes, with various worldviews".

Removal of tweets, Proud Boys and Patriot Front incidents, drag shows, and death threats (April – June 2022)

In April 2022, following the publication of The Washington Post's article on Libs of TikTok, Twitter user @deletedtweet161, who tracks deleted posts, said that Libs of TikTok deleted "at least 20 tweets" over several days. 2,795 tweets had been deleted since the creation of the account, with some tweets being deleted to get access to the account restored following a suspension from Twitter.

In June 2022, Libs of TikTok had some of their tweets removed after they posted the locations of all ages drag shows in the United States. One location, in San Lorenzo, was stormed by the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group. Pride events in Dallas and Coeur d'Alene have also been targeted by right-wing extremists after Libs of TikTok posted about them, with 31 Patriot Front members being arrested, before getting to their destination, for planning a riot in the Coeur d'Alene event. Raichik was reportedly encouraged to post about the Coeur d'Alene event by Dave Reilly, a local white nationalist known for participating in the 2017 Unite the Right rally. According to NPR, "there's no conclusive link between the posts and the extremist groups' activities," although investigators at the Alameda County Sheriff's Office believe that the Proud Boys confrontation was caused by Libs of TikTok.

On June 13, Raichik tweeted that she had "received about a dozen death threats", including threats from people threatening to throw a pipe bomb into her house.

On June 30, in Woodland, California, an alleged Proud Boys group tried to break into a bar that was about to host a drag event, as they yelled anti-LGBT insults. Days before, Libs of TikTok made a tweet about the upcoming event.

Children's hospital tweets and bomb threats (August – September 2022)

Boston Children's Hospital

In August 2022, Libs of TikTok made around 13 tweets about the Boston Children's Hospital and their gender-affirming care, falsely claiming that they were providing gender-affirming hysterectomies to minors. One of these tweets contained a reposted video in which one of the hospital's gynecologists discusses a gender-affirming hysterectomy and Libs of TikTok captioned it as: "Boston Children's Hospital is now offering 'gender-affirming hysterectomies' for young girls". The video was removed after the hospital started receiving a high volume of online criticism, despite the physician not suggesting that the procedure is offered to children.

The false claims that Boston Children's Hospital performs hysterectomies on young children were republished by prominent conservative commentators and conservative media outlets such as The Post Millennial. This resulted in the hospital, its employees, and providers receiving death threats, threats of violence, and other harassment via email, phone, and on the internet. According to Boston physician Michael O'Brien, "pediatric patients in Boston are being seen with extra security" due to threats. The harassment campaign's effect on hospital phone systems temporarily impaired the ability of patients to speak with providers there.

On August 30, the hospital received an anonymous bomb threat by phone which forced the hospital into a temporary lockdown, although it is unknown whether the threat was related to the harassment. On September 9, 2022, Boston Children's Hospital received a second bomb threat, which police likewise responded to. On September 15, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced that Catherine Leavy of Westfield, Massachusetts had been arrested in connection with the first bomb threat. She was charged with one count of making a false bomb threat through telephone and could face up to five years in prison. After the announcement, Libs of TikTok tweeted: "This is great news. Threats of violence should always be taken seriously."

The Washington Post, USA Today, NPR, and Politifact rejected the tweets and claims as false. According to the hospital's website and statements, the hospital adheres to medical guidelines developed by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health and gender-affirming care involving genital surgeries are only offered to patients between the ages of 18 and 35 while surgical consultations can be offered beginning at the age of 17. The hospital said in a statement that "we condemn these attacks in the strongest possible terms, and we reject the false narrative upon which they are based." When contacted by The Washington Post, Raichik did not answer a question about whether she felt responsible for the threats against the hospitals, but said that "we 100% condemn any acts/threats of violence". However, Libs of TikTok later said that she would not stop calling out hospitals and sharing information from them.

According to The Washington Post, an archived version of the hospital's website appeared to state that vaginoplasties, the surgical construction or reconstruction of a vagina, were available to 17-year-olds at the hospital. The hospital has since updated their website to reflect their policy of gender-affirming surgeries only being offered to patients between the ages of 18 and 35. The hospital also clarified that patients can only receive surgical consultations at 17.

On September 18, 2022, several protesters opposed to transgender youth services and around 200 counter-protesters gathered outside of Boston Children's Hospital on Longwood Avenue for several hours. Armed Boston police officers kept both groups separate.

Children's National Hospital and other hospitals

On August 25, 2022, Libs of TikTok published a recording of phone operators at the Children's National Hospital, who incorrectly suggested that a 16-year-old transgender boy could be eligible for a hysterectomy at the hospital's gender development clinic. One employee incorrectly stated that even younger patients are eligible for a hysterectomy. Right-wing media outlets, including Fox News and The Daily Caller, published articles about the recording. A spokeswoman for the hospital stated: "None of the people who were secretly recorded by this activist group deliver care to our patients. We do not and have never performed gender-affirming hysterectomies for anyone under the age of 18." The hospital's website, in error, had previously stated that hysterectomies were provided to patients "between the ages of 0-21". The hospital has received harassment and "a large volume of hostile and threatening phone calls and emails", as well as bomb threats. As of September 2, 2022, the recording has been viewed more than 1.1 million times on Twitter.

In September 2022, Libs of TikTok reposted a 2019 story from Cleveland TV station WEWS-TV about Akron Children's Hospital providing gender-affirming care for transgender youth. Afterwards, the hospital temporarily took down the gender-affirming care section of their website after receiving threats from social media users. The hospital also took down information about its employees and the care they provide. In a statement, the hospital said that "We proudly stand behind the work of our program and providers". In response to the threats, Ohio representative Casey Weinstein tweeted: "Imagine going on Twitter to malign, attack and harass a children's hospital while hiding behind an anonymous account - and being proud of it", adding "That's what we're up against, folks."

The account has targeted other hospitals with false claims about gender-affirming care, including a children's hospital in Omaha, Nebraska, UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and Phoenix Children's Hospital, leading to phoned-in threats and harassment. After Libs of TikTok's targeting of specific hospitals, other pediatric facilities including Chicago's Lurie Children's Hospital have faced harassment and false claims about care they provide. In September 2022, in response to Libs of TikTok's posts, Lurie Children's Hospital increased its security and moved a transgender youth support group from in-person meetings to online meetings.

Reactions

NBC News has described Libs of TikTok as "one of the primary drivers of the harassment campaign" against Boston Children's Hospital.

Legal authorities in the state put out statements supporting the hospital and its patients, with a spokesman for the Boston Police Department stating that they were investigating the threats. The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) also launched an investigation into the threats and has spoken out in support of the hospital, saying that they will "ensure equal protection of transgender people under the law".

FBI Boston Special Agent in Charge Joseph Bonavolonta said that "Making threats of violence is not a prank — It's a federal crime.", adding that "These threats with innocent people at risk divert law enforcement from responding to actual emergencies are costly to taxpayers, and cause undue stress to victims and the community." The U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Rachael Rollins called the attacks "disturbing", adding that "health care providers who support and offer care to gender-diverse and transgender individuals and their families deserve to do so without fear." Boston Mayor Michelle Wu condemned the threats being made against the hospital.

Harvard Law School clinical instructor and transgender activist Alejandra Caraballo said that "It's very disturbing to see people justify attacking a children's hospital because of their transphobia and their hatred of trans people". Michael Haller, a professor of pediatric endocrinology at the University of Florida, said that "A lot of people have chosen to try to be as quiet about their practice as they can to avoid those direct attacks" and that "Institutions have removed their websites, taken down their publicly facing phone numbers." Michelle Forcier, a clinician at LGBT telehealth group Folx Health, argued that "Kids are getting this significant messaging of, not only are you not okay, but we want to hurt you", adding "That's a pretty scary message to get as an 8-year-old or 12-year-old. It absolutely makes everybody think twice about walking in the door , kids and parents."

Content

Libs of TikTok has been described as right-wing, far-right, conservative, and extremist. The Times of London described the account as a "Twitter provocateur".

Libs of TikTok's early content focused on reposts of videos by progressives about Anthony Fauci and vaccinations that it deemed cringeworthy. The account's early content also mocked perceived liberal hypocrisy and "wokeness". Slate linked Libs of TikTok's early success to "shamelessly tagging alt-right and far-right heavy hitters on Twitter, a strategy she continues to use to this day".

Libs of TikTok promotes conservatism and anti-LGBT rhetoric. It has referred to schools as "government run indoctrination camps" for the LGBT community. It has encouraged followers to contact schools that allowed transgender students to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender identity. Libs of TikTok also aims to "spread the horrors of what doctors are doing to young, confused individuals".

Libs of TikTok has also said that adults teaching children about LGBT identities is abusive and constitutes child grooming. In since-deleted tweets, the account specifically accused Chasten Buttigieg and The Trevor Project organization of grooming. The account argued in another since-deleted tweet that any teacher who comes out as gay to their students should be fired. The account has claimed that being gender non-conforming or being an ally of the LGBT community is a "mental illness", and deliberately misgendered transgender people. In a since-deleted tweet, Libs of TikTok stated, "Men should not wear dresses. You can’t change my mind."

Libs of TikTok opposes gender-affirming care, arguing that it is mass scale child abuse and that "Any doctor performing surgeries should have their license revoked. They belong in prison".

The account has been criticized for spreading some hoaxes, such as a false claim that schools were putting litter boxes in bathrooms for students that identified as cats, and a false claim that students in a second-grade class in Austin, Texas were being taught about furries.

Libs of TikTok has denied the existence of systemic racism, but argued that racism against white people was "flourishing" in the United States. Reporting by Slate stated that "Raichik's feed is colored by an intense hostility to liberals generally, but she holds an especially pronounced animosity toward LGBTQ people, city dwellers, and Black people who have been killed at the hands of police", noting that the account has defended and endorsed incidents of police brutality, including the murder of George Floyd and the killing of Ma'Khia Bryant.

The most popular video posted on Libs of TikTok, with 5.7 million views, was taken by a female student of color at Arizona State University and shows her and her friend repeatedly asking a white male student to leave a multicultural center due to a "Police Lives Matter" sticker on his laptop. After the video went viral, ASU investigated and then reprimanded the two female students.

After gaining popularity on Twitter, Libs of TikTok has since expanded to additional social media platforms, including Instagram, YouTube, Rumble, Gab and Gettr. Libs of TikTok also sells merchandise on e-commerce platform Shopify and sells subscriptions on online newsletter platform Substack. According to Erin Reed, a content creator and legislative researcher, "Libs of TikTok relies on monetizing through Shopify and Substack. They use these funds in continuing their work to target children's hospitals and getting them shut down".

Impact

Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. Updates on reimplementing the Graph extension, which will be known as the Chart extension, can be found on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org.

Impact on teachers

After Libs of TikTok reposts videos of LGBT people or their supporters, some of her followers send harassment and death threats to those people, who are usually teachers.

On December 23, 2021, an 8th grade English teacher in Owasso, Oklahoma posted a video to TikTok about supporting LGBT students, in which he stated: "If your parents don't accept you for who you are, fuck them. I'm your parents now. I’m proud of you. Drink some water. I love you". In April 2022, Libs of TikTok posted the video, and the clip went viral. The teacher received death threats and other online harassment as a result, and resigned soon thereafter. Libs of TikTok later made a post claiming, without evidence, that the teacher was fired "after complaints of grooming." Some parents defended the teacher, saying that he provided a "safe haven" for LGBT students. Other parents said that some of the teacher's TikToks were inappropriate. Oklahoma Republican Senate candidate Jackson Lahmeyer accused the teacher of being a "predator". As of May 9, 2022, the repost has more than 460,000 views.

A teacher in California was placed on administrative leave after a video she posted joking about asking her students to pledge allegiance to a Pride flag was reposted by Libs of TikTok on August 27, 2021. After conservative and far-right accounts attacked her on social media, she deleted all of her social media accounts.

On November 16, 2021, Dr. Allyn Walker, an assistant professor at Old Dominion University, was placed on administrative leave after an interview in which Walker argued that pedophilia should be destigmatized was posted on the Libs of TikTok account and went viral. On November 24, Walker resigned from their position.

On March 9, 2022, Libs of TikTok posted a screenshot from a TikTok made by an Indiana teacher who said that she allows the students who participate in her school's Gay-Straight Alliance club (which she leads) to tell their parents that it is a study group instead. Libs of TikTok tagged the teacher's school district in the post, and said: "We have seen multiple examples already of teachers grooming kids in a GSA club behind parents' backs." The teacher later deleted her TikTok account.

On April 13, 2022, Libs of TikTok reposted a TikTok of a woman explaining why she supports teachers who educate their students about "sexual orientation and gender identity" without parental consent. Libs of TikTok also said that "this is what the left really thinks" and that "they want to take your kids to groom and indoctrinate them behind your back." After Libs of TikTok's followers sent harassment to the woman, she uploaded a new TikTok on April 14 in which she said that "bigots" accused her of child sexual abuse "because they thought I was a teacher who thought it's OK to teach kids it's OK to be gay". As of May 9, 2022, the TikTok had more than 500,000 views.

On July 18, 2022, Libs of TikTok posted a photo of first-grade teacher Jake Daggett of the Wauwatosa School District with the quote "we had a great pronoun discussion today" being attributed to the teacher. The post spread to far-right forums, including Patriots.win. Afterwards, Dagget received homophobic comments, death threats, harassment, and posts calling for him to be fired. In response, Dagget said that he would take a short break from social media. The Wauwatosa School District acknowledged the situation on Twitter and Superintendent Demond Means defended Dagget, saying that "the negativity that both Mr. Daggett and his principal have received nationally definitely does not represent the values of our school district. We stand in full support of these two outstanding educators."

A transgender teacher in Los Angeles received death threats and insults after a video they posted denouncing the Parental Rights in Education bill was reposted by Libs of TikTok.

According to Euronews, "some of the people targeted by have received hundreds or even thousands of hate comments." According to a report by the left-leaning media watchdog group Media Matters for America, the account has named or tagged around 222 educational institutions and teachers in 2022 as of April 28.

On a conservative podcast, Raichik stated "it's not easy to be the one responsible for that, for someone losing their job. On the other hand, I mean these people, some of them are literally evil, and they are grooming kids."

Political impact

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis's press secretary Christina Pushaw credited the account for "opening her eyes" on the current state of education around sexuality- and LGBT-related topics. Pushaw has interacted with the Libs of TikTok account more than 100 times since July 16, 2021. Fox News host Tucker Carlson has credited Libs of TikTok, and Pushaw's championing of it, as partly responsible for Florida's passage of the 2022 Parental Rights in Education bill (often referred to by critics as the "Don't Say Gay bill"), which prohibits instruction on sexuality and gender identity in age-inappropriate ways from kindergarten to third grade in public schools.

Libs of TikTok was one of the top-ten most influential Twitter accounts in promoting use of the pejorative term groomer after the passage of Florida's Parental Rights in Education bill, according to a report by the Center for Countering Digital Hate and the Human Rights Campaign. Raichik uses the term as a pejorative for LGBT people, supporters of LGBT youth, and those who teach about sexuality.

Other

Drag queens and drag events organizers said that they received harassment and threats after tweets from Libs of TikTok about them and their work.

In July 2022, OutLoud North Bay, a centre for LGBT youth in Ontario, received hate messages and death threats after Libs of TikTok posted tweets in response to the centre announcing a drag show for children. Also in July, Libs of TikTok made a tweet criticizing the Conservative Jewish camping network, Camp Ramah in Northern California, for "housing kids according to their gender identity rather than birth sex".

On August 10, 2022, Libs of TikTok reposted a video of a therapist who works with sex offenders who have been jailed. In the video, the therapist says their pronouns and advises people to use the term "minor-attracted persons" (MAPs) instead of "pedophiles", arguing that the latter term has "moved from being a diagnostic label to being a judgmental, hurtful insult that we hurl at people in order to harm them or slander them". They also argue that pedophiles do not choose their attraction to children and should not be solely defined by that one aspect of themselves. Libs of TikTok only posted the first two minutes of the video, which made it sound like the therapist was advocating for acceptance of pedophilia and for people to be nicer to child sex abusers. In the full version of the video, the therapist condemns child sex abuse crimes. Libs of TikTok's reposted video has been promoted by Russian and European disinformation networks, such as Tsargrad TV.

Michael O'Brien, a pediatrics resident at a hospital in South Carolina, said that he received threats after Libs of TikTok, on August 15, retweeted a tweet in which he had criticized the account. O'Brien reported some of the threats to his employer's public safety office: "I got three specific threats that came from within a 50-mile radius of where I live", adding that "The threats felt very tangible. I had to take action to protect my partner and warn my family." Regarding Raichik's Twitter activity, he said that "Every single time claims not to have responsibility, but she continues to do the same thing" and that "She's very tactical, and purposefully tries not to break the terms of Twitter while knowing what she's doing is causing harm."

Reception

Response to account content

The account has been described as promoting harassment against and criticizing teachers, medical providers, and children's hospitals and of spreading misinformation and hateful commentary against marginalized groups by reposting videos and social media clips of LGBT people, teachers, schools and other institutions out of context and with incendiary framing. Fans and supporters of Libs of TikTok describe the account as simply reposting content showcasing "sex and gender ideology" that was already publicly available.

Libs of TikTok has described its reposting of videos as "exposés" of "the crazies". Libs of TikTok has also described criticism of her online activity as efforts to "cancel and silence" and has said that she receives death threats.

Negative

Gillian Branstetter, a media strategist for the American Civil Liberties Union, argued that Libs of TikTok "is finding new characters for right-wing propaganda" and that "it's relying on the endless stream of content from TikTok and the Internet to cast any individual trans person as a new villain in their story." Ari Drennen, the LGBTQ program director for the left-leaning media watchdog group Media Matters for America, argued that "Libs of TikTok is basically acting as a wire service for the broader right-wing media ecosystem", adding that the account has "been shaping public policy in a real way, and affecting teachers' ability to feel safe in their classrooms". According to Drennen, she received more than 500 hateful comments about her sexuality and appearance after criticizing Libs of TikTok. Kylie Cheung of Jezebel argued that "Deplatforming hateful accounts like LibsOfTikTok – whose online attacks can clearly, quickly escalate into real-life threats – is an important step. But it's clear we're in the midst of a terrifying, broader anti-LGBTQ moment right now that's being fueled by pretty much every right-wing media outlet as well as top Republicans." Melissa Gira Grant of The New Republic argued that Libs of TikTok "is part of a much larger pattern" of the political right's "embrace of anti-LGBTQ violence". Christopher Wiggins of The Advocate argued that "LibsOfTikTok is voice in an overall climate of anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric that some correlate to an increase of anti-LGBTQ+ incidents." Elad Nehorai of The Forward argued that Libs of TikTok is "fueling a pogrom against trans youth", comparing accusations of grooming to antisemitic blood libel. LGBT organization GLAAD said in a statement that "Libs of TikTok is synonymous with maliciously targeting LGBTQ organizations, people, and allies by posting lies, misinformation, and blatant hate."

Joan Donovan, research director at Harvard's Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, argued that "we've reached this phase in social media where people know what to do when an account like Libs of TikTok calls out another account or a person or institution", calling the response to these posts "networked incitement" that can create "a snowball effect, where you see people getting more emboldened to participate". Donovan also argued that "the precipitating comments may not be that incendiary, but if that creates a pattern of attack that is recognizable, which it is with an account like Libs of TikTok, then these companies are well within their jurisdiction to warn and then ban the account." Donovan has drawn parallels between Twitter's handling of Libs of TikTok and Twitter's failure to stop QAnon, the Stop the Steal movement, and the January 6 Capitol attack, which Twitter only started cracking down on after several acts of violence were linked to these movements. She also drew parallels between right-wing media amplifying Libs of TikTok and the online campaign that resulted in the January 6 Capitol attack. Donovan noted that "We're seeing more people feeling — as they did during the insurrection — that storming a hospital might be their only option to defend themselves and their values". Harvard Law School clinical instructor and transgender activist Alejandra Caraballo argued that Twitter has not banned Libs of TikTok for its content because "they don't want to rock the boat politically while the is ongoing." Meredithe McNamara, assistant professor of pediatrics at Yale University, argued that "allowing this hate speech to fester on the internet and fuel direct threats is going to create long standing harms that are difficult to recover from."

Positive

Bethany Mandel, writing in the Deseret News, argued that Libs of TikTok "showcase the ideology and agenda of the far left in their own words" and "gives parents a disturbing look at what their children are seeing on ". Brendan O'Neill of Spiked argued that "there are some who would prefer to keep the woke indoctrination of the young, so giddily facilitated by Silicon Valley, shrouded from external concern and criticism. It is they who are in the wrong, not Libs of TikTok." Dan McLaughlin of National Review argued that "The Libs of TikTok account exists to expose sexually deviant ideas and conduct posted publicly on the Internet by people in a position to influence young children." and that "her targets volunteer info in their videos about how they use their positions of trust, confidence, and public power to propagandize young children with their ideologies about sex and gender." Fox News host Tucker Carlson defended Libs of TikTok from criticism, saying that "no news organisation in America has done more to reveal the reality in American schools than Libs of TikTok" and called the videos reposted by the account "idiotic and disgusting". Donald Trump Jr. argued that "the question Libs of TikTok often raises – And the Left wants to ignore – Is do parents have a right to know what their children are being taught in their public school, or not?". Ben Shapiro also defended Libs of TikTok from criticism, calling it "a Twitter account that literally just posts Leftists owning themselves."

Response to identity reveal

Bonnie Kristian of The Week argued "the person behind Libs of TikTok doesn't matter much ... because conspiracism is communal now", adding that "Lorenz's exposé largely missed the point." Kat Rosenfield of UnHerd called The Washington Post article "an unmasking worthy of a demented superhero story", adding that "it's hard to know what Libs of TikTok's greater sin is: being wrong, or being popular." Dan McLaughlin of National Review argued that identity reveals like that of Libs of TikTok have "become standard practice for major media reporters who do stories on people on the right who can be framed as 'extremists.'"

Kara Alaimo, a Hofstra University professor and former Obama administration staffer writing for NBC News, dismissed criticism regarding identifying the individual running the account, arguing that "the people in need of protection here are those who are being targeted with hate simply because of their identities – not the people who are hurling the abuse, like Raichik."

Writing about the revealing of Raichik's identity, Kaitlyn Tiffany of The Atlantic argued that "where the term once defined a category, it now expresses an emotion. Whoever feels doxxed will claim to have been doxxed."

Jack Posobiec tweeted: "This isn't journalism. This is doxxing and smearing of Libs of TikTok by the billionaire-controlled Bezos Post".

Some Jewish critics, including watchdog organization StopAntisemitism.org and Jewcy magazine editor Isaac de Castro, argued that Lorenz's mention of Raichik's Orthodox Judaism was unnecessary and promoted antisemitism. Andrew Silow-Carroll, editor in chief of The Jewish Week, defended the inclusion of Raichik's religious beliefs in a blog for The Times of Israel, arguing that it "shed light on the growing connection between faith and right-wing politics".

Other responses

In April 2022, another Orthodox Jew named Chaya Raichik, a stay-at-home mom who grew up in Los Angeles, received hundreds of negative messages from people who mistook her for the person behind Libs of TikTok. Also in April, YouTuber Tim Pool and The Daily Wire CEO Jeremy Boreing purchased a billboard in Times Square to accuse Lorenz of doxxing Libs of TikTok. In response, Lorenz called the billboard "so idiotic it's hilarious".

References

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