Photo: Getty Images
Two families have filed a wrongful death suit against TikTok after two girls, ages 8 and 9, died as a result of a social media challenge, according to FOX 7.
The family of Arriani Jaileen Arroyo, 9, of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and the family of Lalani Erika Renee Walton, 8, of Temple, Texas, both claim their daughters died after participating in the "blackout challenge."
Lalani, who commonly posted videos of her singing and dancing on TikTok, died on July 15, 2021. Her stepmother, Rashika Watson, instructed her to go clean her room. After Watson took an hour-long nap, she went to check on Lalani in her room. The door was shut. Watson "walked in and found Lalani hanging from her bed with a rope around her neck still warm to the touch," said the Social Media Victims Law Center, which is representing Walton's family.
Watson was able to cut Lalani down, but she was dead when police arrived to the scene. Officials said she died due to self-asphyxiation.
Arriani from Wisconsin died in a similar way. She was found by her 5-year-old brother "unconscious and hanging by a dog's leash which she had appeared to affix to the door in her room," FOX 7 reported.
These lawsuits claim both Lalani and Arriani participated in the "blackout challenge" on TikTok. This controversial challenge "encourages users to choke themselves with belts, purse strings or other similar items until passing out." The lawsuit alleges the social media app has a "defective design and is an addictive product that is not safe for users."
"TikTok needs to be held accountable for pushing deadly content to these two young girls. TikTok has invested billions of dollars to intentionally design products that push dangerous content that it knows are dangerous and can result in the deaths of its users," SMVLC founder Matthew P. Bergman said.