Advocates are calling for gang leader’s removal from social media

BY SYDNEE WALCOTT

Social media started as a simple escape from reality for people to watch and create content for others to enjoy.

Fast forward to now, social media can be a way to help those with a high following achieve more great opportunities.

YouTube, one of the most popular social media apps, rewards its users when they achieve a new subscriber milestone. However, many weren’t too happy when Izo Vilaj de Dye, a leader of a notorious gang in Haiti, was awarded a silver plaque for accumulating 100,000 subscribers.

On different social media apps, Vilaj de Dye showcases himself as a: rapper, musician, and record producer. Outside social media, he is the leader of the Baz 5 Segond – a violent gang known for kidnapping and extortion.

Currently, the Village of God, one of Haiti’s poorest slums, is controlled by the gang. The area also has a high kidnapping rate. By the end of 2022, BBC had reported 1,200 cases of gang-related kidnappings in Haiti.

Reuters reported a sharp increase in kidnappings this year. Within a few months into the year, there was a report of at least 389 cases.

The Baz 5 Secong is one of the gangs responsible for most of these kidnappings.

Upon Vilaj de Dye’s posting a photo of himself holding a stack of cash and his awarded YouTube plaque, many took to his YouTube page to voice concern over the monetization of a gang leader.

As a result, a campaign was created on Change.org calling for the removal of his YouTube account from the platform.

Within days after the campaign’s creation, YouTube took down Vilaj de Dye’s account. Although advocates were pleased about this move, they still say there is a long way to go.

Advocates are now asking for TikTok and Instagram to remove the gang leader from their apps too. They want to prevent his influence and online presence from growing any further by preventing him from gaining any more access to social media apps.

Due to gang activity, over 160,000 people have had to seek refuge elsewhere, because of the forced displacement.

Everyone has good and bad qualities, but bad influences should never receive rewards.