The tweet caused a social media uproar, now it’s cost someone their job.
The official Twitter account for the Times Square Ball angered a lot of people with one simple hashtag: #BallLivesMatter.
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The tweet was up for about half an hour before being deleted, but the damage was done.
@deray Aaaaand deleted. In case everyone was wondering, the tweet was "#BallLivesMatter." No joke.
— Kenny Malloy (@KMoyPro) January 1, 2016
the Times Square ball doing a problematic tweet is the perfect spiritual conclusion to 2015
— noah kulwin (@nkulw) January 1, 2016
Black Lives Matter activists directed their anger at the account, calling for the head of the person who sent the tweet. The next day they got it.
A spokesman for New Year’s Eve in Times Square issued the following statement to The Daily Caller:
The Tweet was unacceptable and indefensible. As soon as event organizers became aware of it, it was removed immediately. The person responsible was an independent freelancer and will not be engaged again.
The identity of the “independent freelancer” was not released, saving that person from personal scorn and potential employment issues in the future.