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Laith Ashley was banned from TikTok Live for supposed “sexual activity”—but that’s not the full story

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Laith Ashley | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Now that the U.S. House Of Representatives has voted in favor of a bill that could ban TikTok in the U.S., the popular social video app no doubt has its hands full, but we have a short, simple message we’d like to get through to them:

STOP SILENCING LGBTQ+ VOICES.

Recently, trans actor-model-RuPaul’s Drag Race Pit Crew member Laith Ashley called out the app after he was unfairly suspended from using its TikTok LIVE feature, and has given voice to a growing concern over queer censorship.

Over the weekend, Ashley went live with a stream he titled “That trans guy you might know.” According to the actor, he was talking about the SAG strike last year, which lead to a discussion about how difficult it is for LGBTQ+ content creators right now because our very identities are being deemed political.

“I was talking about how a lot of [LGBTQ+] content creators are unable to make a living creating content because brands are no longer hiring us for brand deals,” Ashley clarified in a later post to his Instagram story. “Our identities have now been politicized… well, now, my transness is political, so me being trans and posting about who I am is political.”

“So I’m not going to get the reach because the app is going to limit the reach that I would have gotten otherwise, even with my following,” he continues. “So if I can’t get [that] reach, the brands aren’t going to want to utilize me to promote their product.”

Ironically, it’s those very sentiments that got Ashley banned on TikTok LIVE. After he was “kicked off” the platform, Ashley shared a screenshot showing his “LIVE access” was removed, meaning he would “no longer be able to go LIVE or join a LIVE as a guest.”

The reason? According to Ashley’s message, it was because he was promoting “sexual activity and services,” which is categorically false.

In the comments on the post, actor-model-friend of Queerty Arisce Wanzer said the same thing has happened to her, and former Drag Race contestant Kerri Colby chimed in to say, “TikTok’s live policing on our community is deplorable to say the least, your lives are always full of love.”

Another commenter alleged that it was “clearly ignorant people reporting” his account. And while we don’t have direct proof of that, it’s not outside the realm of possibility.

In a follow-up video, Ashley underlined the sheer hypocrisy of the situation:

@laith_ashley

I guess sitting down and talking is considered seggsual activity when you’re trans

♬ original sound – Laith Ashley 🍉

“And this is why I don’t post on here unless I’m talking about my dog,” he explained. “Because we have people on here spewing hatred, violence, bigotry, saying things about marginalized groups—the nastiest, most degrading, most disgusting things you could think of—and they get away with it. That’s not hate speech, that’s not inappropriate, that’s not community violations? But the moment I step on here and just talk, you get kicked off. “You can’t go live anymore; that was sexual activity.’ What sexual activity? I’m sitting here!”

But this isn’t just about TikTok, or social media in general. On his way to a workout to blow off some steam, Ashley elaborated further in another post to his Instagram story:

“It’s not just TikTok, it’s not Meta, or whatever—I don’t give a f*ck about that. It’s the silencing, and it’s happening at every level. It’s the erasure. It’s the victimizing folks and then blaming them for their own oppression. That’s what’s bothering me; that’s what’s making me very angry.”

Related:

PHOTOS: 17 images of Laith Ashley De La Cruz at his smoldering best

De La Cruz was one of the ‘Icon’ award winners at WeHo Pride on Sunday.

Again, it’s ironic that, by speaking truth to this reality, Ashley is quite literally being silenced—at least on TikTok LIVE. But that’s not the first medium where something like this has happened, and Ashley is far from the first person this has happened to.

Per another screenshot from Ashley, he had submitted an appeal to TikTok about the alleged community guideline violation, which was not approved.

TikTok—which only took 13 minutes to deny Ashley’s appeal—as yet to make any sort of comment on that matter.

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