The mob hits Broadway: young actress targeted for social media past

A promising young Broadway star has come under threat of cancellation after some of Twitter’s own Mean Girls discovered she was following “conservative” accounts on Twitter.

Laura Leigh Turner, an actress who recently landed the role of Karen on the Broadway adaptation of Mean Girls, is currently the subject of a Change.org petition demanding she be removed from the production for being allegedly “transphobic” and holding “pro-life” views.

On February 10, 2020, Twitter user @robbedsettos began screenshotting accounts which were followed by Turner’s account—which included Donald Trump, Ben Shapiro, Sean Hannity, and Fox News.

Turner, who follows 203 accounts on Twitter, was also found by The Post Millennial to be following Barack Obama, Vox, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as some more benign accounts like IHOP and comedian Steve Carrell.

@robbedsettos’ thread continued on to call Turner a “bigot” for making what appeared to be a joke about agreeing with Donald Trump about the food at the Oklahoma State Fair in a post on Turner’s Instagram, where she shook hands with the President. A retweet by Turner of American Evangelical leader Beth Moore was also singled out and mocked.

Other Twitter users joined in to distribute the Change.org petition, such as @_tylerhaddad, who called Turner “transphobic scum.”

It is unclear what, if anything, Turner said which could be interpreted as “transphobic.” No tweets have been provided by any of Turner’s critics, including in the extended threats which have been populated outlining her supposedly “bigoted views” which relate to gender or trans politics. The Post Millennial was also unable to find any such statements, tweets, or Instagram posts by Turner. Additionally, other than following some pro-life accounts on social media, Turner has never issued a direct statement on any political position.

The cancel campaign against the nascent broadway star is yet another example of cancel culture, perpetuated by a legion of pseudonymous accounts—each vying for social credibility. Otherwise unknown users, when given a platform and the ability to signal boost one another, are a danger to every public personality.

The Post Millennial reached out to Laura Leigh Turner for comment,  but did not receive a response by the time of publication.