As part of her “Be Best” Initiative, Melania Trump has been working on the “Take It Down Act” since literally Inauguration Day. Yesterday, her efforts along with a bipartisan group of Senators and Congressmen, saw that bill signed into law and co-signed by Melania Trump.

This is a hugely important piece of legislation because it involves our children, women and men, and the evil that is revenge porn. First Lady Melania Trump appeared on Capital Hill to lobby for this bill and brought along many of those who’d been victimized by online revenge porn. The next evening, two of those victims appeared with her at President Trump’s address to Congress. 

What is the “Take It Down Act?” This:

The bill, known as the Take It Down Act, mandates social media platforms remove sexually explicit images and videos of others that were taken or posted without consent, including A.I.-generated “deepfake” content, within two days of being notified of them. It was written with teenage victims in mind.

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Mrs. Trump had been pushing for the passage of this bill pretty much since the day of her husband’s second inauguration, when it was first brought up to her by Senator Amy Klobuchar, Democrat of Minnesota, during an inauguration-day lunch. The bill dovetailed neatly with Be Best, Mrs. Trump’s anti-cyberbullying initiative from the first Trump term.

In early March, she made a rare appearance in Washington to hold a roundtable on Capitol Hill with girls who had been victims of online smear campaigns, as well as the father of a young boy who died by suicide as a result of online “sextortion.” It was emotionally charged, teary at times, and the next day, Mrs. Trump took some of those guests with her to the House chamber to watch the president’s address to Congress, in which he mentioned the bill.

Think about it. A young teenage girl is targeted using AI or whatever other online tool available, to create fake sex photos which are then passed around to everyone that person or people can. All without even considering the both immediate and life-long mental and even physical harm caused by having these fake images spread through social media. 

What does the Act intend to accomplish? 

The Take It Down Act, which spurred the first lady to make a rare trip to Capitol Hill to lobby lawmakers earlier this year, criminalizes the distribution of non-consensual intimate imagery — including “revenge porn” that features real images and artificial intelligence-generated photos and videos.

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Ahead of Monday’s bill signing, 49 states had laws barring “revenge porn” on the books, with South Carolina the lone exception.

The new federal law passed the House 409-2 and the Senate by unanimous consent, becoming one of the first pieces of legislation criminalizing aspects of AI.

Perpetrators face up to two years in federal prison if the images feature an adult or three years if they depict a minor.

Websites must remove content within 48 hours of notification that the images violated the law, with enforcement delegated to the Federal Trade Commission.

Given Melania’s #BeBest work during President Trump’s first administration, it doesn’t surprise me that she’s continuing to use her platform to advocate for keeping children and even men & women safe from not only cyberbullying but online revenge porn as well. 

The wonderful thing about this is the bill was completely bipartisan. Everyone joined in on the effort to protect innocents from the insidiousness that is revenge porn. It damages the lives of not only the person targeted, it damages their family and friends as well. And it’s not momentary damage, the repercussions live on for years if not forever. 

Congressman Brandon Guffrey knows, he lived it. His 17 year old son, Gavin, killed himself in 2022 after being harassed and sextorted via text messages.

For weeks, the grieving family searched for signs of anything they’d missed. Then they found out that scammers masquerading as a young woman had sent Gavin nude photos – and asked him for similar images of himself. Once Gavin shared photos with them, they blackmailed him with a threat to publicize them if he didn’t pay.

Gavin had unwittingly become a victim of sexual extortion, or “sextortion,” a crime the FBI warns is increasingly targeting underage boys. Sextortion cases have gone up in the past year, federal officials said in a recent safety alert issued in partnership with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. The cases are contributing to an alarming number of suicides nationwide, the alert said.

Congressman Guffey worked to get Gavin’s Law passed in South Carolina, and is now cheering the passage of the “Take It Down Act.”

I have posted before about the passing of TAKE IT DOWN and the roundtable with FLOTUS. On Friday, I received an invite to go to the White House for the signing on the bill and as I made plans, I found out that the other members of the original “Porch Caucus” will be in DC Monday… pic.twitter.com/Qr4518YEKu

— Brandon Guffey (@brandonguffeysc) May 13, 2025

Online harassment of women, men, and children is a huge problem. Social media can be useful, but it is too often used for evil insidious purposes. None more so that involves the constant harassment and sexual targeting online or via text of their chosen targets. 

“Today, through the ‘TAKE IT DOWN’ Act, we affirm that the well-being of our children is central to the future of our families and America. I am proud to say that the values of BE BEST will be reflected in the law of the land.” – FLOTUS pic.twitter.com/c9PujU5MGZ

— First Lady Melania Trump (@FLOTUS) May 19, 2025

Melania said it well. 

Artificial Intelligence and social media are the digital candy of the next generation—sweet, addictive, and engineered to have an impact on the cognitive development of our children. But unlike sugar, these new technologies can be weaponized, shape beliefs, and sadly, affect emotions and even be deadly.

The Take It Down Act protects our children. It protects women, and even men and boys. Now, with the passage of this into law, it’s up to the social media companies to respond. Do they want to protect their users from harm? It will be interesting to see how they answer the question. 

The enactment of this act and the administration of the same will help save lives. The bipartisan support along with Melania Trump’s advocacy ensured the passage of this hugely important bill. While her signature on the bill was symbolic, it speaks volumes to those impacted by the horrors of revenge porn. 

Feature Photo Credit: Regine Mahaux/White House/ABC/cropped/Public Domain