The attempted murder of social media star Ava Majury by one of her 1.2 million TikTok followers has created a backlash of criticism of the influencer and her family.

Ava Majury is a 15-year-old social media influencer on TikTok, who gained a large following during beginning of the pandemic, in 2020. On July 10, 2021, Eric Rohan Justin, an 18-year-old “fan” of Ava’s, arrived at the Majury family home in Naples, Florida, with a shotgun after asking for explicit pictures from the social media star. Justin attempted to murder the young influencer, but was shot dead by Ava’s father, retired police lieutenant Rob Majury. Almost a year later, another incident of stalking occurred by a classmate of Ava’s, resulting in her withdrawing from in-person classes and seeking legal protection.

Despite the safety concerns associated with Ava’s fame, the influencer remained on all forms of social media; this has caused outrage and concern from many people invested in her wellbeing.

According to The U.S. Sun, the hate received by the influencer continued to grow after the details leading up to the attempted murder were depicted as a “cautionary tale” in The New York Times.

“The fact that Ava’s parents allowed her to sell two selfies to Justin for $300 after he made direct contact with her- weeks before showing up armed at their Florida home and Ava’s decision to remain on social media is largely the point of criticism” U.S. Sun reporter Luke Kenton saod.

Internet trolls (people who want to provoke or upset others online) have taken to Ava’s Instagram comments in order to victim blame her for the incidents.

William Chalfant, a junior day student and Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Twitter user, agrees with Ava’s parents’ decision to let her stay on social media.

“You can have stalkers that are obsessed with you from a distance, and to have someone who gets to the point of coming to your house is already kind of a freak incident that doesn’t happen to every influencer. She’s been successful and this is her form of income,” Will said.

Courtney Carlson, mother of 18-year-old Anna Yarkin who has 12.6 thousand followers on TikTok, believes social media has made children unaware of the true danger of strangers.

“Kids should be very aware of the fact that when you allow your social media to be public, there is the possibility of having unwanted interest,” she said. “Given that a lot of social media happens quietly in a kid’s room and sometimes anonymously instead of in the real world, it can be harder to discern real threats and danger from annoying or rude behavior. It sounded to me like it was a situation that escalated because it was online, making it harder for everyone involved to realize how serious it was.”

According to The New York Times, Mr. Majury first dismissed Ava’s fears after learning the stalker and attempted murderer lived in another state. He told reporter Elizabeth Williamson, “I thought he was one of these keyboard cowboys, I sort of discredited what could have been a threat.”

Catherine Sanderson, a psychology professor at Amherst College and mother of three, thinks the parents are putting their daughter’s life in harm’s way for her social media influence.

“In this particular case, it’s clear that the parents know what is happening and they’re continuing to allow it,” she said. “They have a responsibility to keep their kid’s safe and yet they’re supporting her despite the potential risk.”

Social media is dangerous to the health of impressionable adolescents and needs to be approached appropriately Danna Park, a mother of two teenage boys from North Carolina, is concerned with social media in general because of the impact on developing minds.

“As a parent, I am extremely concerned,” she said. “Yet, there are always going to be nefariously bad people who learn to twist the internet and exploit younger people. Navigating a social media presence can be really difficult and it’s proven to exacerbate anxiety, depression and other mental health issues in children.”

Sanderson said the responsibility is not only in the hands of the legal guardian, but the social media company as well.

“If that girl had been murdered or sexually assaulted is there some obligation that TikTok has that allowed that platform to be operated by a 13 years-old,” she said. “I do think there is a point at which there needs to be legal responsibility and laws just the same as if a liquor store sold to a minor and she got alcohol poisoning and died.”