WILLISTON, Vt. (WCAX) – Lawmakers have taken the first step towards potentially banning TikTok in the United States.
The House of Representatives voted to ban the platform in the U.S. unless there’s an ownership change.
When Williston TikTok content creator Cassie Anne heard about the potential ban on the app, she, and many people in the same position, worried about their job security.
“I took a picture and sent it to a few of my friends and said ‘time to fill out job applications! TikTok as a platform creates jobs for so many different people in different avenues,” said Anne.
With 1.7 million TikTok followers and multiple brand collaborations, TikTok has helped fund half of Ann’s income.
And she says a big part of her TikTok presence is the community she’s built with her platform.
“There’s a reason why it got so big so quickly. It creates these very niche online spaces where people can connect with each other,” said Anne.
The U.S. house passed the ban overwhelmingly 352-to-65, amid concerns TikTok’s parent company, Chinese owned ByteDance, could pose a national security threat.
Congresswoman Elise Stefanik voted to pass the bill.
“I co-led this important legislation to stop CCP owned TikTok from continuing to infect our society and poison the minds of young Americans with pro-Communist China propaganda,” said Stefanik in a statement.
Congresswoman Becca Balint also voted to pass the bill saying, “While social media has created a global community and become a place for connection, we also know that we must take action to regulate social media sites and ensure we safeguard our kids from their known damaging effects.”
Some Vermonters like Creede Burton and Dayanara Galvez of Burlington say they agree with the house’s decision.
“I think maybe it could be good to separate ourselves from China in that way, because of like cyber security stealing,” said Crede.
“Personally, I spend a lot of time on TikTok so I think it could be a good thing for a lot of people, not just me. So, I can see the good in it, but also, it’s really fun so I enjoy it,” said Galvez.
But others say they would be sad to see the platform go.
“I think like especially our age group, it’s something that we use on a daily basis which is kind of crazy, since it didn’t exist a couple years ago, so I think that could cause a big shift in kind of our culture, especially on social media,” said Madison Vetterlein of Burlington.
It’s unclear if the bill will even be brought to a vote at all in the senate.
President Biden has said he would sign the bill if passed.
