Netflix Removes LGBTQ and Horror Tags on ‘Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story’ After Viewer Backlash

It’s not often that we have a tagging scandal on our hands. After facing intense backlash, Netflix appears to have removed the LGBTQ tag on its controversial series, Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. This change happened less than a week after the series premiered.

Since Monster‘s release, several viewers have complained about seeing an LGBTQ tag on the series. “I mean, I know it’s technically true, but this is not the representation we’re looking for,” a TikTok user by the name of Lizthelezbo said in a now-viral post.

Other viewers who also saw the tag also called Netflix out for recommending this deeply disturbing series to subscribers solely based on their interest in LGBTQ content:

Predictably, this backlash has led to yet another backlash. Since the tag no longer seems to be there, other users on social media have claimed that Netflix and audiences are trying to ignore the real Dahmer’s sexuality.

The LGBTQ tag isn’t the only one that’s been obscured from the series. According to MSN, Netflix also removed the Horror tag. Due to the nature of this story, Decider cannot definitively confirm that Netflix removed any tags, but they certainly seem to have obscured them. Currently, the series has been filed under the tags Dark, Ominous, Crime TV Shows, Social Issue TV Dramas, and TV Dramas. Netflix has also yet to confirm or comment about why the tags they were placed there; and if they were removed, why that happened.

At its core, the outrage about Monster‘s mislabeling comes down to contextualization. This case and this miniseries aren’t an excuse to gawk at a horrible chapter in human history. Jeffrey Dahmer was responsible for real human tragedy. The convicted murderer and self-admitted cannibal killed 17 boys and men between 1978 and 1991. The families of many of those victims still have to deal with the shockwaves of this case, including new projects — like Monster — that can be retraumatizing. This case is not the spooky campfire story we as a society often make it out to be, which is why the Horror tag would be upsetting.

The controversy around the LGBTQ tag is similar. A major reason why Dahmer was able to kill so many people was because he often targeted gay men, a historically vulnerable population that the police often ignore. That’s the larger story Monster tries to tell. Uplifting a story about shocking number of LGBTQ victims is not a move for positive representation. If anything, tagging this particular show in this way would have been disrespectful in the kindest of terms and threatening in the most severe.