Following the successful MMA debut of Alana McLaughlin, the openly transgender fighter has admitted she is receiving death threats in the wake of her victory.
Featured on Combate Global on Sept. 9, McLaughlin, a former U.S. Special Services member, made her debut against fellow newcomer Celine Provost. The fight lasted two rounds. After finishing the contest with a rear-naked choke victory, McLaughlin’s hand was raised, but little did she know how the world would react to her seemingly controversial performance.
To give folks an idea of how trans people are treated on social media: I just had a 2-year-old Instagram pic taken down for “inciting violence” because I captioned it “come at me bro” while I was receiving thousands of death threats that “don’t violate community standards” “No appeal possible, of course.” McLaughlin posted on Twitter.
Apparently, the trans fighter is receiving unfair treatment on social media. It is not 100% clear if the death threats began before or after her controversial MMA debut. Nonetheless, the 1-0 fighter has admitted to receiving thousands of death threats at some point. McLaughlin also shared that images from her past with dubious captions are being flagged for “inciting violence” on her social media platforms.
The performance has indeed drawn criticism, as well as former and current UFC fighters who took issue with McLaughlin’s presence in MMA. In fact, UFC middleweight Sean Strickland blasted McLaughlin and her transition and went so far as to say, “get out of women’s MMA, coward”. In addition, former UFC fighter Jake Shields and rising star “Suga” Sean O’Malley also made their reactions public.
It appears McLaughlin is taking the negative attention in stride for the most part, but death threats should be taken seriously. In the coming days, if the threats worsen, MMA News will keep you up to date on the story.
What do you make of Alana McLaughlin’s presence in MMA?
