While the main demographic of news readers understand the weight of the horrific claims that have risen against rap mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, his case has transformed into the topic of humor and entertainment for a much younger audience.
A Hindenburg Research study on the popular gaming platform Roblox discovered that children are accessing a series of concerning content including child pornography and even a lack of supervision over usernames like the 900+ variations of Jeffrey Epstein usernames.
In addition, children were able to access games titled “Escape to Epstein Island” and “Diddy Party.” The report found over 600 “Diddy” themed games including titles like “Survive Diddy” and “Run from Diddy Simulator.”
Though many of these games entail nothing more than running from a blown-up picture of the rapper through a maze of some sort, it strongly suggests kids either don’t know the grisly details of Combs’ case or simply take the situation as a joke. And it doesn’t stop at Roblox.
Teachers have taken to TikTok following the widespread announcement of Combs’ federal indictment to explain why they had to ban the word “Diddy” from classrooms. South African teacher Riaan duRand posted a viral TikTok video in which he explained to his students that anyone who says “Diddy” is being put on “the list.” The room of chatting and laughter fell silent.
“They don’t say ‘no homo’ anymore. At our school, it’s now turned into ‘no Diddy. When the Diddy story just came out, the school was completely fascinated by the story, and this was before we knew that it involved minors. So it was just bottles of baby oil, it was tunnels, and everybody was talking about it,” said duRand to Rolling Stone.
Another teacher took to TikTok to list out what her fourth graders say of Combs’ case, including baby oil jokes and even asking if they can be taught about “Diddy parties.” Students flooded the comments noting their teachers banned them from saying “Diddy” or threatened to write them up if they did. Obviously, the Diddy banter has gotten out of hand considering the charges and growing pile of civil suits he’s facing are no laughing matter — especially considering minors may have been implicated in his alleged offenses.
On Monday, Sept. 16, the 54-year-old rap mogul was arrested in Manhattan by federal authorities, six months after they raided his two homes in Los Angeles and Miami. His indictment was unsealed the following morning, revealing charges of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and engaging in interstate transportation for prostitution. The allegations against Combs include sexual abuse, physical abuse, bribery and various drug offenses.
The most notable claims stem from his so-called “freak off” sex parties, where prosecutors allege women and men were drugged and forced to perform sexual acts at Combs’ pleasure. He was also accused of using video footage to blackmail the victims into compliance.
Combs is now over a dozen sexual assault lawsuits deep on top of facing federal sex crime charges. He’s pleaded not guilty to the three-count indictment and was denied bail three times. He’s set to go to trial in May 2025.