– Blogged by @DanielleBTV
Whew! Another day, another boycott, and this time, Disney is caught right in the middle of it. The hashtag #BoycottMulan is trending worldwide after the “Mulan” star, Chinese-American actress Liu Yifei, voiced her support for the police crackdown in #HongKong this week.
Protesters in Hong Kong are urging fans to discontinue their support of the upcoming live-action #Mulan remake, claiming that the film’s star Liu is anti-democracy and pro-police.
Liu went on a Chinese social media platform called ‘Weibo,’ where she has almost 66 million followers, and shared a photo from ‘The People’s Daily,’ which is a Chinese newspaper allegedly tied to the country’s Communist party. It read, “I support Hong Kong’s police; you can beat me up now” — in reference to a viral quote by a Chinese national.
She then added, “What a shame for Hong Kong. #IAlsoSupportTheHongKongPolice” with a heart and strong-arm emoji.
Policing has become a serious issue in Hong Kong’s political crisis, with officers facing criticism for using excessive force against large groups of peaceful protestors, using tear gas on local residents and concerns that police ignored an organized mob attacking protesters earlier this month, according to Forbes. This comes after protesters began demanding greater personal autonomy in the country and a number of government reforms.
Twitter user @sdnorton tweeted, “Liu is a naturalized American citizen. It must be nice. Meanwhile, she pisses on people fighting for democracy. Retweet, please. HK doesn’t get enough support.”
On the flip side, she also received plenty of support on Weibo and some fans of Liu’s refuse to believe she is anti-democratic. Some are also battling it out on social media, arguing that she may be under pressure of the powerful Chinese government because of her influential celebrity platform.
Despite the split support, the hashtag #BoycottMulan is trending on global social media, although the Disney film isn’t set to hit theaters until March 2020.
She is living in a country with freedom of speech, yet she supports communism and brutality of police.. #BoycottMulan @Disney pic.twitter.com/Krr9ID1bGU
— ??BtoB ? SHINee (@theodorahkk) August 15, 2019
i was fucking hyped for mulan but the actress just had to support hk brutality hUH #BoycottMulan
— bia (@bncmoreno) August 16, 2019
I was happy when @DisneyStudios announce that they are making a new Mulan movie. She was my childhood hero. It is disappointed to see the actress who plays her does not empathise with the protesters in HK. They are fighting for their homeland like Mulan. #BoycottMulan https://t.co/stZma0JBdC
— Cheuk Ting Ho (@cheukting_ho) August 15, 2019
