A viral recording of a woman’s friendly encounter with a homeless man is sparking a debate among TikTokers. Some people felt like she was being kind, while others called her a “bully.”
The TikTok was uploaded by Grace (@thanks4coming) on April 13. In the clip, Grace is seen holding her wallet and exchanging what looks like a necklace with a homeless man. Then the two walk off with their arms over each other. The text overlay reads: “The homeless man who apparently stole my heart after 4 cocktails.”
“Apparently I tried to slide him a $50 too,” she wrote in the caption. The TikTok has over 1.2 million views and counting.
Some commenters applauded Grace, saying she “probably made his year.”
“You are forever gonna be a happy moment in his life. Such a blessing,” another TikToker commented.
“Lol I just know u made him so happy,” wrote another.
Other TikTokers felt uncomfortable with the recording, as if the encounter felt more like exploiting the man for her own gain or entertainment. “Incredibly sad. this whole encounter feels like it didn’t come from a good place just treating him like a pet for a video,” one TikToker wrote.
“Exactly. I’m so glad you agree. This is really hard to watch. Mean girl energy,” another TikToker said.
“They seem to think this girl made his life over a 15 minute encounter,” wrote another.
“She hash-tagged ‘1 leg’ so no one is assuming anything. It’s a fact. She’s a straight bully. Your comment was unnecessary,” one TikToker wrote. As of Thursday, that hashtag was no longer there.
The Daily Dot reached out to Grace via TikTok comment for comment on the story.
Source: https://www.dailydot.com/irl/homeless-exploitation-tiktok/