A family devastated by the loss of their 9-year-old daughter after she died trying a TikTok challenge is suing the popular social media app.
Arriani Jaileen Arroyo died by asphyxiation on Feb. 26, 2021. Her family, who is from Wisconsin, has joined with the parents of 8-year-old Lalani Walton of Texas, who also died of asphyxiation on July 15 of last year, to file a lawsuit against TikTok.
The families joined with the Social Media Victims Law Center to seek justice for their daughters.
The Arroyos said their daughter loved dancing and following TikTok trends, but that they had no idea that such dark challenges existed on the social media app.
According to the lawsuit filed on June 30 by the Social Media Victims Law Center, multiple children from different states died last year after attempting the “blackout challenge” in which people are asked to choke themselves until they pass out. The lawsuit claims that the challenge is suggested to kids on their “For You” pages and that TikTok’s intention is to promote this content to keep users of the app engaged.
According to the CDC, choking games have existed long before social media. But the popularity of TikTok has put challenges like this one front and center since so many young people use the app.
The families of the girls hope that their lawsuit will wake other parents up to what’s really happening on social media so that their children don’t lose their lives. Now, if you search the hashtag #blackoutchallenge, you’ll be redirected to the app’s community guidelines.
Parents are encouraged to talk to their kids about what they’re viewing online and to have open discussions about the world of social media versus the real world–and how seemingly fun online challenges can actually turn deadly.