TikTok, the world's most popular video-sharing app as of 2019, has been trending for quite some time after its first release. This major stardom benefitted a lot of businesses promoting their products through the social media app.
But just like what they say, 'media is a powerful thing' and this 'TikTok make-up tutorial girl' showed the world how powerful social media can be—even against one of the most powerful countries in the world.
'Use the Phone and Search What's Happening in China'
It started like a normal 'make-up tutorial' video. A teenager was seen sitting with her camera facing her. With her left hand, she used an eyelash curler while initiating to teach "how to have long lashes."
After just a few seconds, the teenager commanded her audiences to "use their phone and search what is happening in China"—a different topic from cosmetics to politics. The teenager was identified as Feroza Aziz—an Afghan-American 17-year-old girl.
The rest of her TikTok video was not focused on make-up anymore as she blatantly explained the horrible things that are happening in China's detention centers for Uyghur Muslims or the Turkic Muslim people. She even described this movement as 'another holocaust that is bound to happen.'
The said video gained a lot of viewers from the TikTok community that reached more than 1.5 million views. After this huge success, Aziz told CNN that she was being discriminated against and temporarily suspended from the platform, which is owned by a Beijing-based company.
Therefore, she decided to post her videos to other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram.
TikTok Answers Claim
TikTok immediately answered the claims of Aziz by stating that they are not discriminating against anyone on the platform, and the video is still available in TikTok.
The management also stated that they will not "moderate content due to political sensitivities."
Additionally, Aziz was first banned on TikTok because of posting video showing "Osama bin Laden, which is a violation of TikTok's ban on content that includes imagery related to terrorist organizations."
Aziz explained that the video is only a mockery of her bad experiences as a Muslim teenager.
China and its 'Detention Centers'
China has been filled with different issues for the past year—especially now that a Muslim girl explained the 'real' happenings behind the said 'detention centers.'
However, as explained by the Chinese government, the Muslim camps' pictures that've been spreading online were all 'fake news and fabricated.' Beijing also reiterated that the Muslim camps were not 'murdering or raping'—as claimed by Aziz—anyone from the Muslim community.
They were said to be built for the "education transformation" and "vocational training" for Muslims to fight against the "three evils" of "separatism, terrorism, and extremism."
The United Kingdom even commanded the Chinese government to allow the United Nations to "observe immediate and unfettered access to the region."
