Gun Violence and Global Warming: Teens Are Using TikTok to Fight Back
When no one will listen to your impassioned pleas, the next best thing is to make a funny video containing your concerns go viral
Shrill synth bleeps of British electro-pop duo La Roux’s 2009 hit ‘Bulletproof’ ring out as a tousle-haired teenager in a green Adidas t-shirt looks off-camera. He searches for a bulletproof vest on Google. Then, the chorus kicks in: the video reverts into disco mode — neon lights flash and protective vests scroll across the screen — as our protagonist gyrates and theatrically sings the lyrics: “This time baby, I’ll be bulletproof”.
The subtext is grim. On the morning of 3 August 2019, a lone gunman walked into a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, killing 22 people and injuring 24 others. The following day nine others were killed at another shooting in Dayton, Ohio. According to a database compiled by Mother Jones, this year alone at least 57 people have been killed and 78 wounded in mass shootings in the US.
One reaction might be to retreat into hushed silence and to avoid talking about the elephant in the room. But instead, teenagers are taking to TikTok to grab the elephant by the trunk and — flamboyantly, creatively, and sometimes unblinkingly seriously — use the…
