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New York Post
Girl, 16, dies taking part in TikTok’s viral ‘scarf game’ challenge
By Ben Cost,
2023-06-09
A 16-year-old girl in France died last month attempting the viral “scarf game” — a variation of TikTok’s deadly “blackout challenge” that has claimed several lives over the last year.
Christy Sibali Dominique Gloire Gassaille, who grew up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, was reportedly at home when she tried the deadly stunt. She died May 27, Jam Press reports .
The dangerous pursuit involves fastening cloth around the neck to asphyxiate oneself until passing out for alleged internet clout.
Unfortunately, as with the “blackout challenge,” this exploit can restrict the oxygen flow to the brain, causing seizures, serious injury and even death.
Gassaille was interred June 7 at the Fleury-les-Aubrais cemetery, near her home in Orléans, France.
Gassaille’s death continues a pattern spurred by choking challenges, which have become popular on the Chinese-owned TikTok.
A TikTok search for “scarf game” by The Post on Friday, however, yielded a message of “no results found.”
“This phrase may be associated with behavior or content that violates our guidelines. Promoting a safe and positive experience is TikTok’s top priority. For more information, we invite you to review our Community Guidelines .”
While Soto’s motivation for performing the feat is unclear, her aunt claimed that she had received a WhatsApp message with a link to the challenge after getting bullied at school.
“I believe someone encouraged her to do it,” the bereaved relative insisted. “She suffered a lot with bullying.”
The community was devastated over the preteen’s loss.
“We support our student’s family in this terrible moment,” said a spokesperson for Soto’s school, who further stated she was a “great student, friend, sweet, good and kind.”
In the US, TikTok is facing wrongful death lawsuits after two California girls allegedly hanged themselves to death after viewing “blackout challenge” videos on TikTok.
“TikTok has invested billions of dollars to intentionally design and develop its product to encourage, enable and push content to teens and children that defendant knows to be problematic and highly detrimental to its minor users’ mental health,” the lawsuit reads.
TikTok did not respond to request for comment from The Post regarding the litigation, but reps for the streaming platform have denied responsibility in similar cases.
They declared that “choking game” injuries sustained by young people long predate the “blackout challenge.”
TikTok users are encouraged to flag anybody engaging in the challenge by clicking the “report” symbol.
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