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Talib Kweli has been permanently suspended from Twitter after weeks of allegedly harassing Black woman Twitter user Maya A Moody.
A few weeks ago, Kweli announced that he would be taking some time away from Twitter to focus on his Patreon. However, Complex Media reports via Jezebel that Kweli’s departure was not by choice after “repeated violations of Twitter rules.” Those violations included the prolonged alleged harassment of Maya Moody after she highlighted the effects of colorism within the Black community.
“[Talib Kweli’s] account has been permanently suspended after repeated violations of the Twitter Rules,” a spokesperson for Twitter told Jezebel. “Twitter’s purpose is to serve the public conversation. Violence, harassment, and other similar types of behavior discourage people from expressing themselves and ultimately diminish the value of global public conversation. Our rules are to ensure all people can participate in the public conversation freely and safely.”
Kweli addressed the suspension on his Instagram page, writing, “It’s official. I have officially left #twitter for the greener pastures of #patreon, which is membership fee-based. Now, most of my exchanges will always be with real fans who invest in me. I spent 11 years there, all great times… I exposed a lot of bigots and trolls and made a lot of wonderful friends. Now, in addition to #PeoplesParty, which is in full swing (#TiffanyHaddish up next!), my new album with #diamondditc coming up and the Black Star/Madlib project on the way, you can get to hear tracks from my new solo album #CulturalCurrency exclusively on Patreon. You get to see my TV show Vibrate Higher TV exclusively on Patreon. You get to join the discussion and chat with me and other supporters exclusively on Patreon. And trust me, when you see what I’ve been working on out in Yellow Springs, Ohio with my brothers, you’re going to want to be a part of it. I love all of y’all who have already joined the Patreon (link in bio), and I will be on IG live around 9/10 pm tonight, spinning music and chatting with y’all about this transition tonight! Until then,” wrote the Brooklyn rapper.
The entire ordeal started over a month ago when Moody retweeted a post highlighting Black men who are married or dating Black women. In her retweet, she wrote, “Literally almost all of them are married to light-skinned women, but that’s a conversation for another day,” calling attention to how colorism impacts the Black community. After that, Kweli responded, saying, “Nah, let’s have this convo today,” he tweeted. “Are we talking all of my relationships? My children’s mother, as well? Or are you only talking about who you think I’m currently in a relationship right now? I mean, is any of this really any of your business?”
His attacks on Moody lasted weeks. He said he wouldn’t stop until Moody deleted her Twitter or apologized, but when that didn’t happen, Kweli brought his hostility towards Moody to Instagram.
In fact, things got so bad that Kweli’s fans began to flood her DMs with threats to her and her family. The woman eventually addressed the weeks-long harassment on Twitter. “…Talib Kweli has been on a week-long harassment spree directed at me via Twitter and Instagram, which has led to his followers threatening to murder my family and I for [my] tweet,” she wrote in a statement on Twitter. “I have also been threatened with human trafficking, and [his followers] have been posting pictures of my parents online, who are ALL federal employees, along with their full names, where we live, and my stepmother’s old job and salary. […] a paid employee of Kweli… provides [him] with the usernames of those he wants targeted and harassed … I am not the first or only victim of this behavior from Talib Kweli. He has harassed whoever has come to my aid, and his bots have attempted to leak IP addresses, stalk and harass other people’s families.”
Kweli sent an email to Jezebel, denying that he ever harassed Moody. “Maya Moody is a liar. I’ve never cyber harassed anyone in my life,” he wrote. “I responded, on Twitter, to the lies that Maya posted about me. When you respond to someone who posts lies about you, that is not harassment.”
