Recently, President Joe Biden signed a law that would effectively ban TikTok if the app's China-based owner, ByteDance, doesn't sell its stake within a year.
"Our community is filled with people who have found acceptance and compassion...increased their awareness and broadened their perspectives," he continued. "Our community is also filled with 7 million business owners who have built their livelihoods on TikTok."
Over 21.8 million people have seen Shou's video, and the comment section is filled with nearly 100,000 people who have shared how TikTok positively impacted their life. Here's what they said:
1. One former student shared, "I learned more on TikTok than I did in school."
2. A user tackling their mental health said, "My depression and anxiety have gone way down with tips learned here... I've laughed, cried, and connected with so many people! there is so much love here."
3. "I became human through TikTok," another said. "I rediscovered my passion for travel. I got inspired to make art (and even pursued the craft even to this day!), so much so that I have my own platform here."
4. One of our own BuzzFeeders wrote, "Like a staggering amount of other women, I found support and information for my late-diagnosed (age 31) ADHD. I also saw many videos of women with late or undiagnosed autism that made my life and experiences make sense for the first time after only ever seeing the [stereotype]."
5. "Back in 2020 when I had suffered the loss of my best friend, I would watch TikTok to get my mind off things. Those old songs and fun videos helped me to get through that as well as lockdown," this person shared.
6. "I am a 66 yr young woman," a person added. "I self isolate a lot due to my health. With tiktok, I'm not alone. I've learned so much from tiktok that actually impacts my life in a positive way. Fight on my children! Fight!"
7. A TikToker wrote: "my career is over."
8. Adding to this idea, one artist said, "TikTok is the only platform I've found success for my art I hope it isn't taken away or I won't be able to reach anyone anymore."
9. "I've learned about everything from psychology to life hacks, the truth about politics and makeup," a person said. "I've learned so much here than I EVER did on any platform because it's easy to understand."
10. One stay-at-home mom joked, "howwwww am I going to decide/learn what to cook for dinner??"
11. "The first app I open on my phone is TikTok because it has the most raw, unfiltered, real news of recent or past events and we have grown to be a community knitted with love, knowledge, empathy," this person added.
12. "We are all struggling financially and mentally when everything in my life has gone up food etc...the only thing that's hasn't gone up in TikTok and I can count on that you make my day better," another wrote.
13. This person candidly said, "I feel more connected to the real world. I can actually see and hear what is going on in the world. The things I have learned, experienced, I can't get anywhere else. TikTok has been amazing to me."
14. A user outside the US wrote, "I watch so many in the USA it would be so devastating to not be able to see the friends I have made across the world."
15. "Honestly, TikTok has help me with my mental health quite a bit," this person said. "There's a lot of good advice, and it helped me find others who suffered the same things as me, making me feel a lot more comfortable."
16. A BuzzFeeder wrote, "It helped me verbalize terms like 'mental load', 'domestic coordinator', etc to describe how women do the majority of the household care tasks and planning for those household care tasks."
17. And finally, someone said, "I use tiktok as my happy place. I don't follow anyone I know; all of the accounts that I follow are things that I just enjoy watching, like babies/toddlers, animals, and food. I also follow some accounts based on authoritative/gentle parenting and I've used the skills I've learned from them in practice with my littles. it's nice to have a place to go and just relax."
