Tik Tok is a social networking platform that was founded in 2012. The platform is popularly used to create short videos of people dancing or lip-syncing to popular audio clips. This platform had a renewed relevance In late 2019. However, what started as teens and young adults making short videos has birthed something unexpected. Multiple Tik Tok videos with racist portrayal and connotations have gone viral.
The most notable one so far is a video of two high school seniors that show ‘how to make black people’. In this video, the two teens who attend Carrolton City Schools used the N-word liberally. Furthermore, they stated that various stereotypes such as not having a father, robbing white people, making bad decisions and love for fried chicken were used to make black people.
This video went viral and caused outrage. However, it also made many individuals question why such content could be posted on Tik Tok.
Soon after, another teen posted a Tik Tok video showing black people how to hide from the police. In this video, she portrayed herself hiding in a cotton field. When accused of being a racist, the teen stated that the video was a joke. Eventually, the teen was forced to apologize on the same platform by her father.
These are some of the notable cases of racism being enacted on the Tik Tok platform. While some may argue that these skits are comedy and bad jokes, I disagree. The fact is that racism on Tik Tok is a trend that needs to die.
Link to video 1: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/news/video-2154230/Video-Shocking-racist-video-teens-showing-make-black-person.html
