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Rapper Talib Kweli kicked off Twitter for ‘repeated violations of harassment’

Rapper Talib Kweli has been kicked off Twitter following allegations that he and his fans harassed a woman on the platform. Per Jezebel, the social media platform said it had permanently booted the 44-year-old rapper for “repeated violations of the Twitter rules [such as] violence, harassment and other similar types of behavior [that] discourage people …

Rapper Talib Kweli has been kicked off Twitter following allegations that he and his fans harassed a woman on the platform.

Per Jezebel, the social media platform said it had permanently booted the 44-year-old rapper for “repeated violations of the Twitter rules [such as] violence, harassment and other similar types of behavior [that] discourage people from expressing themselves.” The suspension took effect in late July, around the same time Kweli announced, via Instagram, that he had left Twitter, seemingly voluntarily, for Patreon.

Kweli’s ban allegedly stems from his interactions with a woman named Maya Moody, who in early July tweeted about rappers married to black women — including Kweli — writing, “Literally almost all of them are married to light skinned [black] women but that’s a conversation for another day.” 

Kweli responded, “Nah let’s have this convo today … I mean, is any of this really any of your business?” That was the springboard for what Moody described as a pattern of harassment by the rapper and his fans on both Twitter and Instagram over the following two-week period. This included the posting of personal details — like photos of Moody’s parents — along with threats of violence and sexual abuse.

Moody documented the activity with screenshots and, on July 23, revealed she had been in “constant contact” with Twitter, who “basically said Kweli hasn’t done anything to get suspended and is just barely keeping from crossing the line.”

Kweli denied that the behavior was harassment, telling Jezebel, “I’ve never cyber-harassed anyone in my life. 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.”

On Wednesday, Moody tweeted that Kweli had shifted his focus to Jezebel writer Ashley Reese, who wrote the Aug. 4 article announcing Kweli’s ban. But, “he is also still slandering me on Instagram and at live shows,” she added.

Kweli’s best-known project has been with Mos Def as the hip-hop group Black Star; he has also notched collaborations with Kanye West and Pharrell Williams.

Reps for Kweli did not return our request for comment.

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