Content warning: This article contains mentions of child abuse and revenge porn.
On Jan. 25, former Trump advisor Kellyanne Conway was accused of posting a nude photo of her daughter Claudia on Twitter. 16-year-old Claudia Conway is known most recently for posting TikToks criticizing her mother’s far-right views, as well as for displaying disturbing videos of her mother verbally and physically abusing her.
Although many of the videos have since been deleted, Claudia left one up voicing disappointment that nothing has come from the videos. She hoped someone would reach out to help her.
“I’ve tried everything. My parents are too powerful, and nothing happens. I’m probably going to get in a lot of trouble for this,” Claudia said in a video to her followers. Claudia has said that Child Protective Services (CPS) and police officers have visited her home to investigate child abuse. However, further action to remove her from the household has not been taken. The neglect and abuse levied at Claudia from her mother is shocking to say the least.
This dereliction perpetuates a dangerous and toxic culture of abuse by powerful politicians. Violence against women has only become more normalized after the reign of the Trump administration. In the land of the “free,” we as Americans often bear witness too often to the consequences women face while trying to stand up to their abusers. We have only just been freed from the reign of a previous POTUS with several sexual assault allegations held against him. Some Republicans have effectively normalized this abuse in the public eye, as the victims rarely receive any true aid or reprieve from their powerful abusers.
The nude photo was posted briefly to Kellyanne’s Twitter on her “fleets,” although it was quickly taken down. Prior to the topless photo appearing on Kellyanne’s Twitter, Claudia had been posting several videos of her mother verbally abusing and hitting her. It seems the former Trump advisor used revenge porn against her own daughter to retaliate against her abuse being broadcasted on the Internet.
Kellyanne can be heard screaming at Claudia in several videos: “you ungrateful bitch,” “you’re lucky your mom is pro-life” and “fuck you, dumbass!” Despite these comments being made public, there are still droves of dedicated Trump and Kellyanne supporters flocking to the comments section to protect the abuser. Claudia reported comments telling her she’s lying and “looking for attention.”
There is plenty of documentation of the flagrant abuse and dysfunction in the Conway household. After Claudia’s videos went viral, Kellyanne reportedly stepped down from the Trump administration to spend more time with her family.
“It’s scary how this woman held a position as one of the most powerful women in this country,” Claudia said. Yet, Americans keep allowing abusers to hold positions of power. There are too many people who support or disregard these abuses, as is evident from the comments against a teenager seeking help.
In the past, Kellyanne has made Claudia film videos saying that she isn’t abusive. “[She made] me write that essay apology thing and say I wrote it in October to say she’s not abusive,” Claudia said. After the nude photo went up on Kellyanne’s Twitter account, Claudia posted another video saying her mother would go to jail for the photo.
The next day, however, Claudia posted another video saying her mom’s account must have been hacked and that her mother would never do that to her. With Kellyanne’s track record of manipulating Claudia to publicly say she’s not abusive, it’s not a stretch to wonder if that was the case with Claudia’s defense of her mother’s Twitter post.
Kellyanne needs to be held accountable. Abusers in general need to be held culpable in this country. Claudia should be taken out of the Conway household immediately. However, it’s unlikely that this kind of abuse will disappear until we as a country deem these actions as no longer permissible.
