Woman felt 'dehumanised' after now viral TikTok video filmed without consent, here's why
Representative image
A Melbourne lady claims that after being secretly recorded for a "random act of kindness" on TikTok that went viral, she feels "dehumanised." The woman, Maree, is approached by TikTok developer Harrison Pawluk in the video while she is at a public shopping mall. As he put on a jacket, he asked her to hold a bouquet of flowers. Pawluk bid Maree good day and left before she could give the flowers back. A photograph of Maree's startled expression was taken.
Over 3.5 billion people had seen this video on TikTok. As reported by The Guardian, Maree, who did not disclose her surname, told ABC Radio Melbourne, “these artificial things are not random acts of kindness”. Harrison Pawluk is seen leaning over Maree, who is seated at a cafe, in a screenshot from his TikTok video, asking her to hold a bunch of flowers. Before leaving and filming Maree's response, Harrison Pawluk asked her to hold a bouquet of flowers while he put on a jacket.
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“He interrupted my quiet time, filmed and uploaded a video without my consent, turning it into something it wasn’t … I feel he is making quite a lot of money through it. It’s the patronising assumption that … older women will be thrilled by some random stranger giving them flowers,” she added.
She claimed that when she inquired about being filmed, the answer was "no." She added that she had given Pawluk the flowers. “I didn’t want to carry them home on the tram, to really be quite frank. But I wasn’t given that opportunity,” Maree added.
(with inputs from agencies)
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