Tik Tok gives me hope

In between the chaos and the trolls, humanity resides

Time and time again humanity has been pressed up against the wall so tightly, gasping for our last breath that I’ve often wondered how is it that we have survived?

So many times at the brink of extinction. So many opportunities missed it would seem.

Last week I hit a wall of my own.  I wrote a very dark poem, you can find it here. And just as I was wallowing in my darkness, a new trend emerged on TikTok. In between the calls for support for Palestinians suffering in Gaza and cat videos, there was a call to action to start supporting each other and getting our debts paid off through the creator program on TikTok.

Every day people from all walks of life, struggling themselves were given the opportunity to do something that cost nothing but time. I decided to play along, not really harboring any fantasy that I would make a bunch of money, because my TikTok is very small.  But just engage and see what happens.

In about 24 hours I gained 200 followers and it’s still going, but more than that,what I’m seeing is a grass roots effort akin to a march on the capital or a boycott even. This one using our modern technology, a platform the government wants to take away from us, to support each other in one of the few ways we we can these days. By liking, sharing, engaging on social media. A very simple thing to do that is clearly having an impact.

I honestly don’t know how many people will make money off it, but what I do see is every day people reinvigorated with hope. Something I myself had lost last week and found in the most mundane of tasks. Spending about an hours day,  broken up, liking, following sharing and engaging with people I’ve never met, but who I can see and feel connected to in ways I haven’t felt connected to in a very long time.

When you feel like there’s no way to fight a system that is grown so savage and barbaric, when people are truly suffering and no one seems to care, or at least those that should care and can do something about it, are too busy arguing over fake eyelashes and bad hair dye, you can lose hope that your little act of rebellion, might do anything at all.

I don’t know if this trend will do anything, but I do know that it is given thousands and thousands of people, maybe even millions of people a feeling of connectedness, that they are not alone.

I’ve noticed myself following people and watching peoples videos I probably never would’ve watched before.  Feeling very isolated and small most of the time.

This trend, while also allowing people to connect and get followers has, in its own way, broken down the barriers of niche, marketing and algorithms. It’s shaking everything up again, and people are beginning to see people again.

I do hope a lot of people make a lot of money off at this trend and get their debts paid off. But more than anything. I hope these people stay connected to the new friends and people they have found while participating in this trend.  I hope they don’t get distracted and bored and move on. Because we need more than anything to remember that we are connected. We’re all human on this planet, and together we can thrive.

Let’s start this trend here! Follow me and I’ll follow you back!

You can also follow me on TikTok! @betsychasse