tirsdag 14. januar 2020

Interview: ‘As Human Beings, Everyone Should Care About This Issue’

Feroza Aziz, a 17-year-old Muslim-American high school student, posted a 40-second video about eyelash curling on the Chinese social media app TikTok in November as a ruse to discuss China’s oppression and maltreatment of the Uyghur Muslim minority. The video begins as a tutorial for creating longer lashes, but Aziz abruptly shifts into a discussion of the plight of the Uyghurs to draw public attention to their situation in northwestern China’s Xinjiang region. The video, which quickly went viral, was viewed more than 1.6 million times. 

TikTok subsequently blocked it and temporarily suspended Aziz’s account for violating a policy on terrorism-related material. Nevertheless, Aziz says she will continue broaching the subject via social media. In an interview with Gulchehra Hoja of RFA’s Uyghur Service, Aziz talks about why she is speaking out about the Uyghurs and what kinds of viewer feedback she has received. The Q&A has been edited for length and clarity.