A heartbroken Pennsylvania mother is suing TikTok after her 10-year-old daughter died from doing what’s referred to on the video network as the “Blackout Challenge.”
In her suit, Tawainna Anderson said that her daughter, Nylah, attempted the dangerous challenge, which encourages participants to restrict their airways until they lose consciousness, in December.
Anderson said that her daughter heard about the challenge from the company’s “For You” page.
Nylah was rushed to the hospital and admitted to the intensive care unit, where she remained for several days before her death.
Anderson filed the suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
“One of the deadliest TikTok Challenges to make its rounds on the TikTok Defendants’ app and be promoted to users by their FYP algorithm is the TikTok Blackout Challenge, which encourages users to choke themselves with belts, purse strings, or anything similar until passing out,” a portion of the suit reads.
The suit also states that the company’s algorithm “determined that the deadly Blackout Challenge was well-tailored and likely to be of interest to 10-year-old Nylah Anderson, and she died as a result.”
The suit also alleges that the app preys upon “vulnerable users, such as children, who are thrust into a never-ending dopamine feedback loop which creates addiction and a compelling urge to engage further in the TikTok Defendants’ app.”
Anderson is suing for an undisclosed amount of damages and states that the company is guilty of wrongful death, strict product liability, and negligence, CBS News reported.
“I want to hold this company accountable,” Anderson said in a statement on the suit. “It is time that these dangerous challenges come to an end, that other families don’t experience the heartbreak we live every day.”
Attorney Jeffrey Goodman added, “Our lawsuit is not about simply somebody posting the video, it’s about the actions that TikTok took to send the video to Nylah.”
TikTok has yet to issue a public statement on the pending litigation.
Reporting from The Blaze.
