Activist journalist lies about being chased out of Minds IRL free speech conference

Originally published on September 1, 2019

The Minds IRL conference took place yesterday in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The event had to be moved to a different location after threats of violence were thrown at the original venue, the Pitman Broadway Theatre. One threat, by the “antifascist” fascist group Antifa, went so far as to say that they would burn down the theatre, attempting to cancel an event which aimed to end “racism, violence, and authoritarianism.”

During some of the intermissions between speakers, some attendees were approached by Talia Lavin, a known liar and troll. While those in the press all knew to avoid her, many attendees did not.

Her presence was eventually revealed to all in attendance. During the Q & A section of one of the panels, an eye-patched man approached the microphone and said, “I don’t really have a question, so you should probably cut me off now. But, there’s a pigeon-shaped lady here interviewing people, and lying about you on Twitter.”

The person, obviously, was Talia Lavin.

Lavin had posted a thread of tweets covering the event, taking photos of people she interviewed along with “quotes” of what they said. But when talking to some of those who were in the tweets, a different story emerges.

Many feel as though they were taken out of context, or that longer statements were cut down and used to paint a bad picture of the event-goers.

Outside of the event doors was one woman who was tweeted by Lavin. In Lavin’s tweet, she claims the woman believed “in the separation of the races.” The woman, who had to change clothing and take off her makeup to avoid being recognized, said the comment in Talia’s tweet, “Other people can f*ck who they want—I’m a libertarian—but I would not marry outside my race,” was part of a longer statement and was selectively taken out of context to make event-goers look like racists.

Unfortunately, other event-goers who were posted by Lavin had completely lost their trust in speaking with media, and politely refused to give any comment or to clarify their statements. All of them, though, said they were false.

One woman claimed that she approached Lavin after, asking her to delete the tweet. According to the woman, who went by Anna, Lavin said her phone was dead before she “waddled away” to her vehicle.

Lavin does not have a perfect record when it comes to accuracy. Recently, the journalist quit her job at the New Yorker after falsely accusing an ICE agent of having a Nazi tattoo.

Finally, Lavin left the conference. It was a conveniently timed exit for her, as she left two panels before keynote speaker Daryl Davis took stage. Davis, a well known anti-racism activist, has de-radicalized over 200 members of the KKK, befriending them along the way.

Since this goes directly against the narrative that Lavin was trying to create, it makes sense that she would leave.

But of course, Lavin claims it was no typical exit. Rather, she claims that she was “chased through” the Sugarhouse Casino.

Lavin says that during the Andy Ngo panel, several people confronted her about the misleading tweets about them. That’s when she made an exit, “streaking” to the door.

“I must admit ‘being chased by racists through a casino’ wasn’t on my life bingo card but life is a rich tapestry,” said Lavin.

The problem with Lavin’s statement, though, is that casinos are some of the most secure buildings available for the public to enter in North America. Every inch of most major casinos are under the watchful eye of security cameras.

So when The Post Millennial asked a security guard, along with the Director of Security for Sugarhouse Casino, Anthony DiLacqua if there had been any foot chases in the casino, the answer was a firm and unsurprising “No.”

TPM: There was no foot chase through this casino?

DiLacqua: No.

TPM: Is there any way possible that would even happen?

DiLacqua: No. No. No. No one got chased out of here tonight. No one got chased. We’ve had no incidents tonight. This event’s been a peaceful event. That’s all I can say, I can’t really comment.

As if Lavin’s motives weren’t clear enough, she later went to the Wooden Shoe bookstore, self-described as a “non-profit book shop specializing in anarchist, radical literature and music.”

So that all but confirms it. A radical truth-bender who actively spreads misinformation went to an event which was aimed at ending racism and fighting authoritarianism, and thought she was fighting the good fight.

Lavin seems to be a part of the authoritarian, thought-policing, progressive cult that has fought vehemently to control the media narrative. She’s now taken it a step further by framing free-thinking people as racists who chase their opposition out of casinos.

Lavin has yet to respond to The Post Millennial’s request for comment.