Next week, Alexandra Tweten is taking the online phenomenon of Bye Felipe out into the real world with a live event at the Virgil in East Hollywood entitled Bye Felipe Presents: A Night of Comedy to End Unsolicited Dick Pics. The night will include stand-up comedy, a pop-up by artist Whitney Bell, a panel of “dick pic experts” and a live taping of the Bye Felipe podcast.
The massively-popular Instagram @ByeFelipe came into being back in 2014 when Tweten needed a way to strike back against the scourge of skeezy men who were harassing her and sending inappropriate photos.
As she puts it, “I want to take the power away from the creeps who send us harassing unsolicited dick pics by calling them out and turning the shame back on to them.”
The account quickly went viral as other women found they could identify with her humorous way of responding to the online abuse. Soon the submissions of screenshots and stories were pouring in. Now the Instagram boasts more than 430,000 followers and the Bye Felipe brand has expanded to other platforms.
Beyond a chance to laugh and feel a sense of community, the live event hopes to raise awareness of the hostile and sometimes violent way men treat women online, starting with the sending of unsolicited dick pics. Organizers will be encouraging people to sign a petition pressuring Facebook to change their terms of service to ban the sending of unwanted lewd content to others. It might seem like one small change, but they hope it will be part of a larger movement.
Bye Felipe Presents: A Night of Comedy to End Unsolicited Dick Pics takes place July 8 from 7 to 9:30pm at the Virgil, 4519 Santa Monica Blvd; a donation of $5.00 is suggested for entry.