Emily Ratajkowski speaks out after TikTok faces US ban as she warns ‘we should be really scared’ and insists it’s a ‘huge moment in history’
Emily Ratajkowski shared her thoughts on the TikTok ban facing the US after Congress voted overwhelmingly to force the app’s Chinese parent company to divest.
The House of Representatives voted Wednesday in favor of a bill that would ban TikTok unless its Chinese parent company sells its stake, despite calls from both Donald Trump and Elon Musk to oppose the bill.
And now the 32-year-old model has spoken out against the man in a racy TikTok video as she made a free speech argument against the ban.
Speaking to her followers, she explained that “progressive politics has blossomed” on stage and warned “we really need to get scared,” insisting that “this is a big moment in our history.”
She began, “So in my personal life, people have made fun of me for talking so much about TikTok and how important I think it is.
Emily Ratajkowski, 32, spoke out as TikTok faces a US ban as she warned ‘we really need to be scared’ and insisted it’s a ‘big moment in history’
Speaking to her followers, she explained that “progressive politics has blossomed” on the platform and warned “we really should be scared,” while insisting that “this is a big moment in our history.”
“They joke, ‘Oh, you work for the Chinese government? What’s going on,” and every time they bring up privacy issues, I tell them, “You don’t think Meta and Apple are stealing all our data and information. and sell it to the US government?”
Emily continued, “Because this is one of the few platforms that is not fully controlled by the US government or by companies that have the interests of the US government at heart.
‘Progressive politics has been able to flourish here. We’ve been able to see stories and points of view that we otherwise wouldn’t have access to.”
Emily concluded: “TikTok is being banned because the US government is legitimately afraid of the influence it has on the American people and the general population – which to me indicates that TikTok is a very powerful tool for organizing, for alternative thinking and for activism . .
“And while it was really funny and apocalyptic end times humor to see Nancy Pelosi doing a Tic Tac Toe thing or whatever, we should be really, really scared and this is a huge moment in our history.”
The House passed the bill on a 352-65 vote Wednesday morning will head to the Senate, where if passed it will land on the desk of US President Joe Biden, who has said he will sign it into law.
However, as the bill has gained momentum, so has the opposition.
Last week, Trump insisted that if TikTok is banned, its rival Facebook would “double their revenue.”
The House of Representatives on Wednesday voted overwhelmingly in favor of a bill that would ban TikTok unless its Chinese parent company sells its stake, despite calls from both Donald Trump and Elon Musk to oppose the bill.
Emily concluded: “TikTok is being banned because the US government is legitimately afraid of the influence it has on the American people and the general population – which to me indicates that TikTok is a very powerful tool for organizing, for alternative thinking and for activism . ‘
TikTok sent this notice to users Tuesday morning, asking them to contact their lawmakers to let them know if they support the TikTok bill
Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk has spoken out against the TikTok law, claiming it could be used as a form of government oppression
He wrote: “I don’t want Facebook, which cheated in the last election, to do better. They are a real enemy of the people!’
Elon Musk also pushed back on the ban, calling it “government censorship,” in a post on X Tuesday.
He wrote: ‘This law isn’t just about TikTok, it’s about censorship and government control! If it were just about TikTok, it would only mention ‘foreign control’ as a topic, but that’s not the case.”
The House China Select Committee says Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials through ByteDance are using TikTok to spy on the locations of its American users and dictate its algorithm to carry out influence campaigns, making it a national security threat.
After the law is signed, ByteDance would have 165 days to get rid of TikTok. If not, app stores and web hosting platforms are not allowed to distribute it in the US
Emily is no stranger to raising her voice against internet censorship, even to the point of stirring up controversy.
In 2021, she was a rare celebrity to advocate against Facebook banning then-US President Donald Trump in the wake of the January 6 storming of the Capitol.