Google Trends: A look at the events happening in China and United states and how its affected the release of new film ‘Mulan’
United States and China are facing similar issues with police brutality within their countries and how it lead to boycotts towards the new film ‘Mulan’
Police brutality across the globe
Those in Hong Kong, China are facing the same issue as those in the United States. Citizens in Hong Kong have been fighting for a better democracy and for an end to police brutality. Protests have been going on since 2019 and things have only gotten worse. According to an analysis of google search data comparing the search of “police” and “protests” in the two countries. It shows the two terms are commonly searched for since the beginning of 2019 in China due to the new laws proposed by the government during that time. The United states data shows the search for these terms didn’t become popular until May when the Black Lives Matter movement began.
Sunday September 6th was the 100th day of Black Lives Matter protests in the city of Portland, Oregon. These protests are against police brutality and racial injustice taking place in states all across the United States. The protests that occurred Saturday night in Portland resulted in over 50 arrests. Protesters used fireworks and rocks towards the police leading to the use of tear gas and multiple arrests made.
Similarly, issues like these have been taking place in Hong Kong. Many of these protests in Hong Kong have been going on since 2019 due to the proposed law to send people to mainland China for trial but later progressed to include the stop to police brutality that has been escalating in the country. Recently Hong Kong citizens protested over the decision made by the government to postpone elections due to COVID pandemic. This led to hundreds of protesters on the streets fighting for their voice’s to be heard.
With hundreds of protesters on the streets of Hong Kong protesting the government, police used pepper balls to attempt to control the protesters. Most protesters walked with posters chanting slogans against the new law. These pro-independence slogans are considered illegal under the national security law imposed since June. Many of these protesters are afraid that this new law will create a more totalitarian government. These protests have continued on and have a big possibility of continuing until they reschedule the election.
Just like what is currently happening in the United States it’s also happening 7,000 miles away. These protests have been going on for months in the United States and for over a year in Hong Kong. Citizens continue to fight for their rights and for the rights of those who have been affected by the injustices of the political systems these countries have in place.
Mulan vs Hong Kong
The 2020 version of the Disney classic ‘Mulan’ was released on September 4, 2020. Due to COVID-19 the film was released via Disney+. It can be streamed with a Disney+ account subscription in the United States. The film was also released in other global markets like in Malaysia and Singapore. Although doing surprisingly well for the opening weekend in some parts, other parts of the country weren’t too happy about the film’s release.
The leading actor who plays the role of Mulan in the film is Liu Yifei. She posted the following on an online website “I support the Hong Kong police. You can all attack me now. What a shame for Hong Kong.” This led to issues amongst the public because of the issue they are currently facing with police brutality. According to an analysis of google search data, it shows that both “Mulan” and “boycott” have been searched frequently in China around the start of the protests in Hong Kong with another spike as the film reaches its release date. There have been lots of protests against the Hong Kong police and what they are doing. With Liu Yifei stating her support for the police it led to many boycotts against the movie.
These protests are starting to spread around to parts like Thailand where they stand with the people of Hong Kong to show that the violence against the people is not right. Chinese citizens want to see change in their country and with the so called princess “Mulan” not showing her support for the Chinese citizens it has affected the viewings. It’ll be interesting to see what the theaters look like when this movie is released in theaters on September 7, 2020.
