# Melania Trump speaks out on consequences of non-consensual deepfake images

### By Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
USA TODAY

### First lady Melania Trump spoke out in favor of bipartisan legislation that would criminalize the publication of non-consensual deepfake sexual images.

**First lady Melania Trump** on Monday used her first public comments since her husband's inauguration to speak out about the publication of non-consensual sexually explicit images, saying the consequences for victims are "heartbreaking" and calling the online atmosphere "toxic."

"It’s heartbreaking to witness young teens, especially girls, grappling with the overwhelming challenges posed by malicious online content, like deepfakes," said Melania Trump, who was joined on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., by lawmakers and victims of digital abuse in support of the Take it Down Act, which was unanimously passed by the Senate earlier this month.

"The Senate-passed bill, introduced in August by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., criminalizes the publication of ‘non-consensual, sexually exploitative images, including AI-generated deepfakes.’”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., a staunch Trump ally who was at Monday's roundtable with the first lady, signaled his interest in getting legislation across the finish line to address the topic too.

"As the dark side of technology advances, these unspeakable evils become part of the culture. The law has to keep up," Johnson said. "We are anxious to put it on the floor in the House to get it to President Trump's desk for signature cause we've gotta do what we can to stop this.”

Elliston Berry, 15, who was sitting next to the first lady, shared her story about being "violated" on social media. She was 14 when a classmate used an AI app to attach a nude body to an Instagram photo of her, before circulating it on social media.

"Fear, shock and disgust were just some of the many emotions I felt," Berry said. "I felt responsible and began to blame myself and was ashamed to tell my parents despite doing nothing wrong."

Berry said that when she reported the incident to her school in North Texas, the authorities responded saying it was out of their control. It was only after Cruz's Senate office heard her story and reached out to Snapchat personally, that her photos were removed, she said.

Two other victims, Francesca Mani, 16; Breeze Liu and state Rep. Brandon Guffey of South Carolina, whose son died by suicide after receiving deep fake threats, also shared their stories at the roundtable.

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