During the quarantine last spring some students at Liberty had nothing better to do than bash on their peers. Over the long summer break, many accounts were made over social media platforms to “spill tea” and spread hate. One student saw this hate and took action. He created the Instagram account “@liberty.hype.lhs”. This account’s purpose was to spread positivity and drown out the hate. Since the beginning of this account in early September, he has kept his identity a secret. Now, however, the owner is ready to reveal themself. 

Matthew Washburn, a senior at Liberty, originally created this account to garner a more positive outlook. 

“I created the account because everyone spreads negativity without thinking twice. I think if we use positivity in place of negativity, we could change for the better,” Washburn said. He runs this account by himself. When asked why he kept the account anonymous, he said “I figured if people knew who ran it they would be superficial.” 

By keeping this account a secret, Washburn helped provide a more safe and secretive environment for people to submit their comments. However, with that sense of anonymity, people got too comfortable, sending hateful messages as well- those were never posted. 

There have been 84 posts over the span of about three months. Washburn states, “all drama does, is hurt others.” His main goal is to help others be more positive and spread kindness. The account has since run dry- getting fewer submissions and posting less. This is why he has decided to finally reveal himself as the owner.