People were outraged when TikTok banned Feroza Aziz, who is from New Jersey, days later. They said the app's Chinese developer, ByteDance, was censoring views that went against the Chinese Communist Party, indicative of the delicate balance the company finds itself in. But TikTok told BuzzFeed News that Aziz was actually suspended for another video — one with a meme about Osama bin Laden.
"So, the first thing you need to do is grab your lash curler, curl your lashes, obviously," Aziz begins in the TikTok about China. "Then, you're gonna put them down and use the phone you're using right now to search what's happening in China, how they're getting concentration camps, throwing innocent Muslims in there. ... This is another Holocaust, yet no one is talking about it."
i always wondered how girls get they eyelashes so curled up and everything
An estimated 1 million Uighur Muslims are currently imprisoned in
internment camps in northwest China's Xinjiang region. The camps have
been widely condemned by the United States and other nations.
In the camps, Uighur Muslim families are separated from each other, and those imprisoned have reportedly been beaten, tortured, and forced to study communist propaganda and sing songs of praise to the government.
On Monday, Aziz was banned from using TikTok on her phone, prompting widespread outrage and accusations that the Chinese company was censoring criticism about the country.
TikTok denied that Aziz’s ban had anything to do with her videos on the internment camps, but she doesn’t quite believe it. “I still find it suspicious that TikTok took down my video right when my posts on China’s concentration camps were made. Doesn’t sound right to me,” she said.
The incident comes just a month after Congress raised questions about whether the Chinese app poses "national security risks."
“With over 110 million downloads in the U.S. alone, TikTok is a potential counterintelligence threat we cannot ignore,” wrote Sens. Chuck Schumer and Tom Cotton. “Given these concerns, we ask that the Intelligence Community conduct an assessment of the national security risks posed by TikTok and other China-based content platforms operating in the U.S. and brief Congress on these findings.”
Responding in a blog post last month, the company said it does not “remove content based on sensitivities related to China.”
“We have never been asked by the Chinese government to remove any content and we would not do so if asked. Period,” the company said.
In the camps, Uighur Muslim families are separated from each other, and those imprisoned have reportedly been beaten, tortured, and forced to study communist propaganda and sing songs of praise to the government.
On Monday, Aziz was banned from using TikTok on her phone, prompting widespread outrage and accusations that the Chinese company was censoring criticism about the country.
TikTok denied that Aziz’s ban had anything to do with her videos on the internment camps, but she doesn’t quite believe it. “I still find it suspicious that TikTok took down my video right when my posts on China’s concentration camps were made. Doesn’t sound right to me,” she said.
The incident comes just a month after Congress raised questions about whether the Chinese app poses "national security risks."
“With over 110 million downloads in the U.S. alone, TikTok is a potential counterintelligence threat we cannot ignore,” wrote Sens. Chuck Schumer and Tom Cotton. “Given these concerns, we ask that the Intelligence Community conduct an assessment of the national security risks posed by TikTok and other China-based content platforms operating in the U.S. and brief Congress on these findings.”
Responding in a blog post last month, the company said it does not “remove content based on sensitivities related to China.”
“We have never been asked by the Chinese government to remove any content and we would not do so if asked. Period,” the company said.
![.@x_feroza says #TikTok capitulated to China & blocked her account after she posted this fab clip [sound on]](https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1153709600895619072/vosYTFk-_normal.png)
.@x_feroza says #TikTok capitulated to China & blocked her account after she posted this fab clip [sound on]
But a spokesperson for TikTok told BuzzFeed News that Aziz wasn't
suspended for that video, but another: one that sexualized Osama bin
Laden, they said.
The spokesperson's representation of the video was not entirely accurate. Aziz has posted about the dead al-Qaeda leader and mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, but in an interview with BuzzFeed News she said the offending video was a dark spin on a TikTok meme — not a sexualization of him.
"There’s a trend on TikTok where you post like, ‘The type of boys or girls I liked when I was little,'" Aziz said. "Mine was like, ‘I liked a lot of white guys, but now I like brown people’ and at the end was [bin Laden] as a joke."
She added, "It was a dark humor joke that he was at the end, because obviously no one in their right mind would think or say that."
In the TikTok, Aziz shows images of the white male celebrities — such as Justin Bieber — she had crushes on in middle school. "Whatcha Say" by Jason Derulo plays over the short video as she reveals she now has crushes on nonwhite and Muslim celebrities like Zayn Malik. The last photo in the video is of bin Laden.
The spokesperson's representation of the video was not entirely accurate. Aziz has posted about the dead al-Qaeda leader and mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, but in an interview with BuzzFeed News she said the offending video was a dark spin on a TikTok meme — not a sexualization of him.
"There’s a trend on TikTok where you post like, ‘The type of boys or girls I liked when I was little,'" Aziz said. "Mine was like, ‘I liked a lot of white guys, but now I like brown people’ and at the end was [bin Laden] as a joke."
She added, "It was a dark humor joke that he was at the end, because obviously no one in their right mind would think or say that."
In the TikTok, Aziz shows images of the white male celebrities — such as Justin Bieber — she had crushes on in middle school. "Whatcha Say" by Jason Derulo plays over the short video as she reveals she now has crushes on nonwhite and Muslim celebrities like Zayn Malik. The last photo in the video is of bin Laden.
Aziz did not know why she was banned before her interview with BuzzFeed News, despite having reached out to TikTok about it.
"I emailed them about this, and they never got back to me," she said. "I woke up on Monday and saw [I was banned], and was like, wow, okay."
This isn't the first time Aziz's account has been taken down or had videos removed, she said. She believes many of them got reported by other users; her previous account was banned too. (The video about China was posted on Saturday from a new account.)
"For my last account, I had multiple videos taken down, and all the videos taken down were my Muslim videos — me making jokes Muslims could laugh about, relatable Muslim content," she said. "That’s just how TikTok is. There’s always people that report things."
Aziz's new account and videos are still up, but she said she cannot access her account from her phone. A TikTok spokesperson said it was because her device was banned the last time she had her account removed, but that her current account remains active — though not usable from the same phone.
All in all, it equates to an exceptionally 2019 story. Aziz said she's frustrated and confused that she could get banned for what she believes was clearly a joke.
"Everybody has dark humor, and there are people on TikTok who post explicit things about murder and very intense stuff, and that’s not taken down," she said. "My thing that’s a joke that my group can laugh at, that Muslims and brown people can laugh at, that’s taken down."
Still, she's also glad so many people now know about the human rights crisis in China.
"As a Muslim girl, I’ve always been oppressed and seen my people be oppressed, and always I’ve been into human rights," she said.
She added: "I’ve known about this [crisis] since 2018, and I’ve always talked about it, but whenever I talked about it, no one would care to listen. Everyone just cares what people are wearing, what’s the new style, who’s the new YouTuber, who’s doing this. So I wanted to make a TikTok about it.
"I just wish I could do more to help. I hope something can be done from this."
"I emailed them about this, and they never got back to me," she said. "I woke up on Monday and saw [I was banned], and was like, wow, okay."
This isn't the first time Aziz's account has been taken down or had videos removed, she said. She believes many of them got reported by other users; her previous account was banned too. (The video about China was posted on Saturday from a new account.)
"For my last account, I had multiple videos taken down, and all the videos taken down were my Muslim videos — me making jokes Muslims could laugh about, relatable Muslim content," she said. "That’s just how TikTok is. There’s always people that report things."
Aziz's new account and videos are still up, but she said she cannot access her account from her phone. A TikTok spokesperson said it was because her device was banned the last time she had her account removed, but that her current account remains active — though not usable from the same phone.
All in all, it equates to an exceptionally 2019 story. Aziz said she's frustrated and confused that she could get banned for what she believes was clearly a joke.
"Everybody has dark humor, and there are people on TikTok who post explicit things about murder and very intense stuff, and that’s not taken down," she said. "My thing that’s a joke that my group can laugh at, that Muslims and brown people can laugh at, that’s taken down."
Still, she's also glad so many people now know about the human rights crisis in China.
"As a Muslim girl, I’ve always been oppressed and seen my people be oppressed, and always I’ve been into human rights," she said.
She added: "I’ve known about this [crisis] since 2018, and I’ve always talked about it, but whenever I talked about it, no one would care to listen. Everyone just cares what people are wearing, what’s the new style, who’s the new YouTuber, who’s doing this. So I wanted to make a TikTok about it.
"I just wish I could do more to help. I hope something can be done from this."
-
Julia Reinstein is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in New York.Contact Julia Reinstein at julia.reinstein@buzzfeed.com.Got a confidential tip? Submit it here.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment