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Chaya Raichik / Libs of TikTok vs. transgender people

Chaya Raichik is an American conservative activist who created the Libs of TikTok social media accounts. Raichik frequently targets transgender and gender diverse people and their supporters. The project’s avatar is the transgender symbol styled in TikTok logo colors.

Raichik reposts social media posts made by others, often with commentary, which typically inspires followers to abuse and harass those Raichik has featured.

  • Since Raichik began targeting upcoming drag and pride events, anti-transgender protesters have been showing up at these events, requiring the presence of police and additional security.
  • Since Raichik began targeting Jewish and Christian youth camps with inclusive policies for all children, staff had to take steps to ensure security.
  • Since Raichik began targeting medical professionals who support transgender and gender diverse youth, death threats and bomb threats have been called in to children’s hospitals and clinics that help trans youth. Some hospitals have switched to telemedicine appointments to protect children and their families.

Libs of TikTok is sometimes styled Libs of Tik Tok and abbreviated LoTT or LTT. It has become a primary pipeline for anti-liberal and anti-progressive content, similar to other anti-transgender “drama” platforms like Blocked and Reported and The Matt Walsh Show. Content that generates enough outrage then gets featured on mainstream conservative outlets hosted by people like Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson.

Several people are named Chaya Raichik, including an author and a homemaker. In Chabad-Lubavitch communities, Raichik is a common surname and Chaya is a common given name. Please do not contact anyone with this name directly.

Background

Chaya Mushka Raichik (Hebrew: חיה מושקא רייצ’יק) was born in ~1989.

Parent Rabbi Yaakov Raichik, aka Yankee Raichik, is a Los Angeles-based chaplain in the California Department of Corrections.

Chaya Raichik worked in New York as a licensed real estate investor at Evergreen Realty / ERNY LLC in Brooklyn (listed as Chaya Raichek). Raichik created what became the Libs of TikTok Twitter account in November 2020.

Soon after, Raichik claimed to have participated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack. Photographic evidence appears to place Raichik trespassing on restricted Capitol ground, standing on the plaza steps among others prosecuted for insurrection.

Raichik’s New York real estate license expired in February 2021. Raichik reportedly moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles since becoming an anti-transgender activist.

Twitter timeline

Raichik was not a heavy social media poster before Twitter. Raichik’s account was inspired by and supported by other conservative accounts, some of which have since been suspended:

  • Liberal_Ls [suspended]
  • johnny_commie [suspended]
  • _callmeriss [suspended]
  • consoftiktok [suspended]
  • BidenLs
  • basedtiktok

Accounts Raichik has mentioned are almost all conservative media figures and include:

  • Elon Musk (@elonmusk)
  • Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray)
  • Elijah Schaffer (@ElijahSchaffer)
  • Shashank Tripathi (@ComfortablySmug)
  • Babylon Bee (@Not_the_Bee)
  • Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog)
  • Daily Wire (@realDailyWire)
  • Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi)
  • Jack Posobiec (@JackPosobiec)
  • Rudy Giuliani (@RudyGiuliani)
  • Marjorie Taylor Greene (@mtgreenee)
  • Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert)
  • Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro)
  • Candace Owens (@RealCandaceO)
  • Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly)
  • Michael J. Knowles (@michaeljknowles)
  • Caleb Hull (@CalebJHull)

At the end of 2021, Raichik posted:

Year in review: Libs of Tik Tok top 3 highlights of 2021: 1. Contributed to the removal of FIVE bad teachers from schools 💪🏼 2. Four shoutouts (plus a dm) from Joe Rogan 🥳 3. Got fact checked by Snopes on a sarcastic tweet 😂

In 2022, software developer Travis Brown revealed that the Twitter account used for Libs of TikTok had used the screen names @shaya69830552, then @shaya_ray. Raichik used @chayaraichik until late February 2021, and that name appears on the libsoftiktok.us domain registration.

As @shaya69830552 (2020)

As @shaya_ray (2020-2021)

According to the Washington Post, Raichik claimed to have attended the January 6 protests:

In January 2021, Raichik started talking about traveling to D.C. to support Trump on Jan. 6 at the Stop the Steal rally. When violence broke out at the Capitol that day, she tweeted a play-by-play account claiming to be on the ground. “They were rubber bullets from law enforcement. 1 hit right next to me,” she said. She posted videos from the crowd and spoke of tear gas being deployed nearby. After saying she left the riot, she used Twitter to downplay the event, claiming that it was peaceful compared to a “BLM protest.”

Lorenz (2022)

As @ChayaRaichik (2021)

  • criticized New York Governor Cuomo

As @cuomomustgo (2021)

  • criticized Cuomo and California Governor Gavin Newsom
  • praised Florida Governor Ron DeSantis

As @houseplantpotus (2021)

original avatar

As @libsoftiktok (April 19, 2021 to present)

  • Began posting “a lot about the LGBTQIABCD… community” specifically targeting trans and nonbinary people
  • Raichik credits Joe Rogan with helping the account grow after he began promoting the channel in June 2021
  • Began targeting teachers supportive of LGBTQ rights
  • Began calling people supportive of LGBTQ youth “groomers”
  • Began attacking drag events, especially those with young people present or participating
  • Began attacking specific medical professionals, their employers, and their facilities.

In April 2022, Raichik said, “Whenever we have a big victory through my account, like a crazy groomer teacher being fired, it really fires me up a lot.”

The next day, The Washington Post profiled the site and confirmed Raichik’s name. Raichik announced a monetizing plan via Substack:

Substack has become the platform of choice for “hate actors,” said Center for Countering Digital Hate CEO Ahmed, because the company and its leaders fail to enforce the rules and guidelines that it sets to keep the platform safe.

Perrett (2022)

That week, Babylon Bee CEO Seth Dillon announced that he had personally made a deal with Raichik “that will turn her heroic, high-risk work into a career.”

Bans and suspensions

TikTok account

  • permanently banned in March 2022

Twitter account

  • temporarily suspended on April 13, 2022 for promoting “violence, threats or harassment against others based on their sexual orientation or other factors such as race or gender,” reinstated
  • temporarily suspended on August 27, 2022, for “hateful conduct,” reinstated

Instagram account

  • automatically suspended on May 27 for multiple copyright complaints, reinstated

Facebook account

  • suspended on August 17 for one day “in error,” reinstated

Attacks on Jewish children’s camps

In 2022, Raichik began a “social media offensive” against Camp Ramah for their gender-inclusive policy. Camp Ramah is a network of summer overnight camps and day camps affiliated with Conservative Judaism. Camp leadership responded, “We are in contact with our security partners out of an abundance of caution.”

Attacks on Christian children’s camps

In 2022, Raichik posted an attack on Camp Akita, a nondenominational Christian camp in Ohio, for its gender-inclusive policies. The camp is affiliated with First Community Church, part of The United Church of Christ and The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Staffers have not responded publicly to the attack.

Attacks on drag and pride events

Raichik frequently posts about scheduled events featuring drag performers at libraries and other public locations, as well as drag performances at restaurants and entertainment venues. In several instances, the events were then protested, disrupted, or cancelled outright due to potential violence.

Attacks on children’s hospitals

Raichik began targeting Boston Children’s Hospital, an early innovator in trans health services for young people. Threats quickly followed:

According to VICE and other mainstream media outlets, doctors and other hospital staff are now receiving death threats. The Hospital confirmed that they are receiving a “large volume of hostile internet activity, phone calls and harassing emails including threats of violence toward our clinicians and staff.”

GLAAD (2022)

Raichik, Matt Walsh, Chris Rufo, and other anti-trans activists immediately began dismissing the threats to this and other targeted hospitals as fake news.

On September 15, the FBI announced the first arrest in connection to the threats. Catherine Leavy, a 37-year-old from Westfield, Massachusetts admitted that calling Boston Children’s Hospital on August 30, 2022, and made the threat, “There is a bomb on the way to the hospital. You better evacuate everybody. You sickos.” Leavey made over 200 contributions to conservative causes since 2016, including former President Trump’s Campaign, MAGA PACs and other Republican campaigns.

FBI Boston Special-Agent-in-Charge Joseph Bonavolonta said:

In recent months, Boston Children’s Hospital has been the subject of sustained harassment related to the airing of grievances pertaining to services they provide to gender-diverse and transgender individuals and their families. This has caused a huge amount of angst, alarm and unnecessary expenditure of limited law enforcement resources. Specifically, the hospital has received dozens of hoax threats, including harassing phone calls and emails, individual death threats and threats of mass-casualty attacks. This behavior is nothing short of reprehensible, and it needs to stop now. The real victims in this case are the hospital’s patients. Children with rare diseases, complex conditions and those seeking emergency care who had to divert to other hospitals because of these hoax threats. Threatening the life of anyone who seeks any type of health service is a heinous act and will not be tolerated.

Following the success of these attacks, Raichik began targeting other children’s hospitals and providers.

In 2022, Raichik appeared on Tucker Carlson Today and revealed that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis offered Raichik the guest house at the Governor’s mansion in response to Raichik’s self-outing in public public posts. New Twitter owner Elon Musk began reinstating anti-trans accounts and liking Raichik’s transphobic posts, adding to the surge in transphobic content on Twitter.

In 2024, Taylor Lorenz reported that Raichik was using “anti-woke” job board RedBalloon to hire an investigative journalist.

References

Lorenz, Taylor (November 1, 2024). LibsofTikTok is hiring an investigative journalist to launder her hate campaigns. User Mag https://www.usermag.co/p/libsoftiktok-is-hiring-an-investigative?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=3238&post_id=150807866&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=1mn67&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

Carless, Will (November 2, 2023). When Libs of TikTok tweets, threats increasingly follow. USA Today https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/investigations/2023/11/02/libs-of-tiktok-tweets-death-bomb-threats/71409213007/

Tirrell, Alyssa; Gogarty, Kayla (November 2, 2023). TIMELINE: The impact of Libs of TikTok told through the educators, health care providers, librarians, LGBTQ people, and institutions that have been harassed and violently threatened. MMFA https://www.mediamatters.org/libs-tiktok/timeline-impact-libs-tiktok-told-through-educators-health-care-providers-librarians

New York State Department of State (dos.ny.gov)

Reed, Erin (December 27, 2022). DeSantis Offered Libs Of TikTok The Governor’s Mansion Guesthouse – More Revealed In Hate-Filled Interview. Erin in the Morning https://erininthemorn.substack.com/p/desantis-offered-libs-of-tiktok-the

Task Force Butler (December 22, 2022). The Impact of Online Hate Mongering: An Exploratory Analysis of @LibsOfTikTok. RPubs https://rpubs.com/TaskForceButler/984347

Loder, Chad (December 27, 2022). Chaya Raichik appears to have trespassed at the Capitol. Extremism and Disinformation Research https://newsletter.extremism.io/archive/did-chaya-raichik-trespass-at-the-capitol/

Staff report (December 12, 2022). The artificial growth of hate speech. Chuds of TikTok https://chudsoftiktok.substack.com/p/the-artificial-growth-of-hate-speech

Lewak, Doree (February 2, 2022). From mask-shaming to bad teachers, mystery woman exposes ‘Lefty lunacy’ on ‘Libs of TikTok’ New York Post https://nypost.com/2022/02/02/the-mystery-woman-behind-the-viral-libs-of-tik-tok-account/

Goforth, Claire (April 18, 2022). “Libs of TikTok—the influential, mystery Twitter account hailed by mainstream conservatives—attended Jan. 6 Capitol protest”. The Daily Dot. https://www.dailydot.com/debug/libs-of-tiktok-attended-capitol-riot/

Carbonaro, Giulia (April 19, 2022). Who is Chaya Raichik? Woman Allegedly Behind Libs of TikTok. Newsweek https://www.newsweek.com/chaya-raichik-woman-libs-tiktok-taylor-lorenz-1698927

Lorenz, Taylor (April 19, 2022). “Meet the woman behind Libs of TikTok, secretly fueling the right’s outrage machine”. The Washington Post. [archive] https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/19/libs-of-tiktok-right-wing-media/

Perrett, Connor (April 20, 2022). Libs of TikTok is the latest right-wing star to court paid subscribers on Substack. Insider https://www.businessinsider.com/libs-of-tiktok-substack-right-wing-washington-post-2022-4

Ortiz, Andi (April 20, 2022). Unmasked Libs of TikTok Author Draws Support From Conservatives, Makes Deal With Babylon Bee CEO. The Wrap https://www.thewrap.com/libs-of-tiktok-author-unmasked-babylon-bee-seth-dillon/

Tomlinson, Hugh (April 22, 2022). “Libs of Tiktok: Twitter provocateur gives Republicans new weapon in war on liberals”. The Times. London. ISSN 0140-0460. https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/libs-of-tiktok-twitter-provocateur-gives-republicans-new-weapon-in-war-on-liberals-tfrrvh9rf

Stahl, Jeremy (April 27, 2022). “The Hate-Fueled and Hugely Influential World of Libs of TikTok”. Slate. https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2022/04/chaya-raichik-libs-tiktok-groomer-tweets.html

Persaud, Chris (May 10, 2022). Libs of TikTok creator backed by Babylon Bee CEO of Juno Beach. Palm Beach Post https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/local/2022/05/10/babylon-bee-ceo-juno-beach-backs-libs-tiktok-creator/7385009001/

Hayden, Michael Edison (June 14, 2022). “Far-Right Influencers Hyped Coeur d’Alene Pride Before Patriot Front Showed Up”. Southern Poverty Law Center. https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2022/06/14/far-right-influencers-hyped-coeur-dalene-pride-patriot-front-showed

Hadjenberg. Jackie (July 19, 2022). Jewish camp reassures families amid ‘social media offensive’ over inclusion of trans kids. Jerusalem Post https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-711591

Zadrozny, Brandy; McCausland, Phil (August 16, 2022). “Boston Children’s Hospital warns employees over far-right online harassment campaign”. NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/boston-childrens-hospital-warns-employees-far-right-online-harassment-rcna43376

Bond, Shannon (August 26, 2022). “Children’s hospitals are the latest target of anti-LGBTQ harassment”. All Things Considered. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2022/08/26/1119634878/childrens-hospitals-are-the-latest-target-of-anti-lgbtq-harassment

Jamison, Peter (August 26, 2022). “Children’s hospital threatened after Libs of TikTok recording on trans hysterectomies”. The Washington Post. Retrieved August 27, 2022. https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/08/26/childrens-national-hospital-trans-hysterectomies/

Nehorai, Elad (August 29, 2022). “Libs of Tiktok is fueling a pogrom against trans youth”. The Forward. https://forward.com/opinion/515868/libs-of-tiktok-is-fueling-a-pogrom-against-trans-youth/

Lorenz, Taylor; Dwoskin, Elizabeth; Jamison, Peter. “Twitter account Libs of TikTok blamed for harassment of children’s hospitals”. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/09/02/lgbtq-threats-hospitals-libs-of-tiktok/

Resources by Chaya Raichik and Libs of TikTok

Libs of TikTok

TikTok (tiktok.com)

  • @libsoftiktok [suspended]

Twitter (twitter.com)

Substack (substack.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

Facebook (facebook.com)

YouTube (youtube.com)

Telegram (telegram.org)

Parler (parler.com)

Truth Social (truthsocial.com)

Rumble (rumble.com)

Gab (gab.com)

Gettr (gettr.com)

Media

Carlson, Tucker (April 15, 2022). ‘Libs of Tik Tok’ creator speaks on Big Tech punishments. Fox News https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbG6lIpa8jo

Henneberg, Amanda [“Hollywood Henn”] (April 19, 2022). EXCLUSIVE: Interview with Libs of Tik Tok. The Ruthless Podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahISOM71Pms

Newsmax TV (September 20, 2022). ‘Libs of TikTok’ owner: This is happening everywhere. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9yh7moDqu8

Carlson, Tucker (December 26, 2022). “Libs of TikTok” creator talks to Tucker. Tucker Carlson Today https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jw3MtV8_X9w

Resources about Chaya Raichik and Libs of TikTok

Salish Coast Antifascist Action (APT-19.3.161). Deleted tweets for libsoftiktok https://github.com/salcoast/deleted-tweets-archive/blob/main/datasets/libsoftiktok-deleted.md

Media Matters for America (mediamatters.org)

Anti-Defamation League (adl.org)

  • Libs of TikTok (Chaya Raichik)
  • “Libs of TikTok is a popular anti-LGBTQ+ twitter account operated by former real estate agent Chaya Raichik. The account, which has over 1.3 million followers as of August 2022, attempts to generate outrage and stoke anti-LGBTQ+ hostility by reposting selected out-of-context social media content created by LGBTQ+ people and liberals. The individuals, events and organizations targeted by the account are frequent targets of harassment, threats and violence.”