As if the whole racism debate surrounding Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid isn’t ridiculous enough, an uninformed Indonesian TikTok user waded in and thought it would be funny to do blackface amid the controversy.
Over the past day, several Black TikTok users have been posting their shocked reactions to the video of an Indonesian man in blackface.
In that video, which we won’t dignify with a share here, the man sits in front of the TV with his back turned to us, while above him the caption reads, “My daughter’s reaction to the little mermaid trailer.”
When Ariel, played by Halle Bailey, comes on the screen, the man turns towards the camera with his face plastered by what appears to be a black mask. He then shouts, “Mommy! She looks just like me!” before putting on a red wig.
It appears the Indonesian TikTok user has been flagged for violating the platform’s community guidelines as his account was temporarily inaccessible today. However, as of this article’s publication, his account is back but the racist video has been removed.
While it’s disheartening that he chose to enter the Little Mermaid discussion in the most despicable way imaginable, it’s probably not surprising given that racism, while not often discussed in Indonesia, remains a problem in the country.
Also Read — Fellow Indonesians, it’s time to talk about racism
