In the wake of the TikTok ban, and growing disapproval from the American people towards our government, where will TikTok users go?
Well, It seems many have found refuge on the app REDnote.
Why not Douyin?
A few native REDnote users have asked me why we don’t go to Douyin. Douyin is the Chinese TikTok. A quick google search reveals that You can’t use Douyin in America. It is only available within China. This is due to strict content moderation and data privacy regulations enforced by the Chinese Government. That being said, TikTok is the international version available everywhere else. Ideally, we would love to simply jump over to the Chinese version. But, the sad answer is that it is simply not an option.
What is REDnote?
REDnote is a Chinese social media app that uses short-form video content, along with pictures. It is sort of like the DanceByte owned app Lemon8 or Instagram. However, it more closely resembles TikTok, which is what American users are used to. While REDnote is not Chinese TikTok, they operate very similarly. REDnote is correctly called “little red book”. This name is a reference to the book “Quotations from Chairman Mao Zedong”. The book contains 267 aphorisms from the Communist Chinese leader. It covers subjects such as class struggle, “correcting mistaken ideas” and the “mass line”. It wasriginally produced in 1964 by the People’s Liberation Army . The book was originally called “200 Quotations from Chairman Mao.” It soon became a key feature of the leaders’ cult of personality, according to the BBC.
Why is America banning TikTok?
It basically comes down to fear-mongering. For our entire lives, Americans have been taught that the Chinese are our enemies. That they hate us because of our freedoms, and that we must defend those freedoms at all costs. However, what I (and many other TikTok refugees) have found, is that could not be further from the truth. The Chinese have been very friendly and welcoming to us American guests. They care little to nothing about the freedoms we cling to so vehemently. To them, we are a non-issue. As Americans, we are taught that we are the kings of the world. That we are the greatest, the most important, and that everyone wants to be us. This is, put simply, a lie.
So, what better way to uphold these ideals, than to prevent us from finding out the truth?
The American Legislators want to ban TikTok. They argue that it presents a National Security risk to the American People. There are young users on the app who may become members of congress, military, or otherwise someday. Their activity on the app now may put them at risk for blackmail in the future. This is, obviously, complete nonsense.
We learned from the appointment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the supreme court. It shows that committing crimes does not prevent someone from serving the people. The same is true for convicted felon Donald Trump being elected to POTUS twice. Doing horrible things does not, in any way, stop someone from serving the people. That is, as long as they have enough money to throw at the people making the decisions.
In reality, they are banning TikTok because we use it to organize. We use it to rally together to get the things we want done. We use TikTok to organize when we don’t like something our government is doing. We speak up about it. The results have been overwhelmingly positive to date.
Back in 2020, Donald Trump held a rally in Tulsa, OK. Much like any of his rally’s. However, this one was slightly different. Trump had been boasting that he was going to draw the largest crowd ever. He even posted a tweet. He asked his supporters to register for free tickets to his rally right from their phones. This was where he messed up. Hundreds of thousands of TikTok users took action. These included teens and K-Pop fans. They grabbed all the tickets. They had no intention of actually attending the rally. The aim was to artificially inflate prospective attendance, resulting in an embarrassing moment for Trump. The campaign was wildly successful, resulting in attendance of only around 6,200 people out of the anticipated 19,000+. We embarrassed Trump, and that’s why it’s being banned. Plain and simple.
What is our responsibility as guests on REDnote?
- Remember, we are guests
- Be respectful
- Be kind
- Do not try to bring American Ideals to the platform
- Learn at least a little Chinese
- Understand that not everyone will accept your presence there
- Dont. Shit. In. The. Kitchen.
REDnote is not our space, it is not our home. We are simply seeking refuge there. Tread lightly, and don’t touch anything.
Manuscripts Of Dread 