The social media platform TikTok has rapidly become a hub for educators, activists, and creatives to influence all aspects of culture. From launching dance trends to educating and mobilizing voters, TikTok has changed how more than 150 million users across the United States create, engage, and learn.
But a new movement has risen to ban the app, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. Lawmakers at the state and federal level are growing concerned over the prospect of American users’ data becoming accessible to the Chinese government. While data privacy is a concern across all social media apps, the singling out of TikTok points to a racist anti-Asian sentiment. What’s more: The banning of a social media app would be a dangerous act of censorship on the free speech of millions of Americans.
ACLU-WV Interim Executive Director Eli Baumwell today sent a letter to Sen. Joe Manchin urging the senator to stand firm on constitutional principles, reject fearmongering rhetoric around TikTok and opposed any proposed bans on the platform.
Read the letter below.