“The rumored 'slap a teacher' dare is an insult to educators everywhere. And while this is not a trend on TikTok, if at any point it shows up, content will be removed,” TikTok said in a statement.
Educators are sounding the alarm about the so-called “slap a teacher” challenge on TikTok. But is it real or a hoax that has taken on a life of its own?
Sickening video shows a student slapping and striking a 64-year-old teacher who uses a wheelchair. The incident was real but initially thought by some to be in connection with the rumored “slap a teacher” challenge.
But the school district in Louisiana tells Inside Edition, “We don't have any evidence from our investigation that this incident is related to the TikTok challenge.”
There was also a report out of Massachusetts that a student was accused of slapping a staff member while at school in connection with the supposed TikTok challenge.
“The rumored 'slap a teacher' dare is an insult to educators everywhere. And while this is not a trend on TikTok, if at any point it shows up, content will be removed,” TikTok said in a statement.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong says he's fed up over dangerous social media challenges, including a recent trend on TikTok that encouraged students to vandalize their schools.
“This has really gotta stop. And that’s why I am putting so much pressure on TikTok,” Tong said. “And they’ve got to do more to use either their machines or human eyeballs to take this content down so that kids aren’t encouraged to tear their schools apart, slap their teachers or worse.”
One school district in Massachusetts sent letters to parents warning that hitting a teacher could be considered assault and battery and could possibly lead to criminal charges.
