- A Russian Instagram influencer, who has more than 200,000 followers, received immediate backlash after posing for a photo shoot during a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Los Angeles on Friday.
- In a video posted on Twitter, Kris Schatzel is seen dressed up and posing with a Black Lives Matter sign in front of a crowd of protesters as a photographer takes pictures of her.
- Her actions have been criticized by thousands, with some users calling her out for using the demonstrations as an opportunity to "flex on social media."
- Schatzel, who is Russian, has since responded to the backlash, calling the criticism she's faced "detrimental to the movement."
An Instagram influencer caused outrage after a video showed her posing for a photograph in front of a Black Lives Matter demonstration in Los Angeles on Friday.
Kris Schatzel, a Russian social media influencer, was seen dressed up and standing with a Black Lives Matter sign amid protesters, while a photographer was taking pictures of her.
The video, which was posted on Twitter on Friday with the caption "Stop treating the protests like Coachella," has been watched thousands of times. Now, users are calling her out and accusing her of trying to use a demonstration to "flex on social media."
—influencersinthewild (@influencersitw) June 5, 2020
One person commented: "I swear some people think the protest is Coachella or a rock concert. They go there to hang out and flex on social media."
Another wrote: "The card says BLACK LIVES MATTER. The action tells me INSTA LIKES MATTER MORE."
Schatzel, who has more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, has since responded to the backlash, calling the criticism she's faced "detrimental to the movement."
Before making her Instagram account private, Schatzel wrote: "I truly believe this level on intolerance and hateful comments are detrimental to the movement and what we are all trying to achieve for black and brown communities."
"I hope we can all we can all focus on the true cause as to why we are all here."
It is the second weekend in a row, in which thousands of protesters are taking to the streets across the country to condemn police brutality and call or justice.
Instagram was flooded with posts of black squares on Tuesday as social media users around the world participated in the so-called Blackout Tuesday protest, to show solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement after the death of George Floyd.