A Movement And Strike Initiated By Black Creators On TikTok
TikTok remains a popular social app, yet the grass is not always greener on the other side. When Megan Thee Stallion unveiled her new song, it was expected a dance would accompany it. However, black creators charged white people for taking credit for dances they never created in the first place.
The trend was typically a song was released, and then a choreography followed. According to CNN, Black creators from whom these dances often originated decided to organize a protest that claimed their work was exploited to benefit others.
“At the center of the strike is the question of compensation and credit: Who is allowed to profit, and who is kept at the margin.”
Cultural appropriation is common on social media and happened before on TikTok
Do you remember a black creator creating a dance “The Renegade” and then hearing about her much later? If you did not know, it was Jalaiah Harmon. She posted a video on Instagram back in 2019 and white influencers like Addison Easterling and Charlie D’Amelio popularized the dance.
It was not until a year later that the New York Times reported the original pioneer and creator of the dance.
According to Blasting News, foul play is something that happens on TikTok. In addition, when you go beneath the surface former and popular dances (Renegade, Holy Moly Donut Shop, Mmmxneil and Cookie Shop) came from black creators.
TikTok garnered special attention in 2020. With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, its usage and adoption grew exponential. Moreover, former President Donald Trump nearly succeeded in banning TikTok over national security concerns. Since Joe Biden took office, he revoked the order for the company to be sold and what will come of TikTok is still unknown.
TikTok goes on the offense by countering the protest and uplifting black creators
With all the recent protest and movement around black appropriation, TikTok has tried to appease the controversy. It launched a dedicated account below to recognize black culture.
Even though there are intentions to counter the critics and voices of opposition, the story is far from finished. The issues of race, discrimination and appropriation of the black culture is far from finished.
This problem dates back to slavery. Those who sit in power benefit from exploiting it and profiting. If it was not a common-place practice creators who come up with influential dances and choreography should be compensated accordingly.
What do you think will happen next? Is TikTok just another platform, or is it recognizing talent or culture when it needs to? Food for thought…
