Aussie Woman Featured In Viral TikTok Rips Into The Influencer Who Made It
Published
| Last updated
An Australian woman who was featured in a viral TikTok video has ripped into the influencer who posted it.
Random acts of kindness pop up all the time on social media as content creators try to show how beautiful the world could be if we were all a little nicer.
While loads of people soak up that content like a cactus in a desert, a woman who was at the centre of one says it was actually kind of annoying.
Harrison Pawluk has racked up more than 57 million videos on his TikTok video showing him walking up to a stranger at a shopping centre and gifting them flowers for free.
It seemed like a pretty heartwarming gesture.
Except the woman he gave the flowers to has now spoken out about how 'de-humanising' it was to go viral.
Speaking to ABC Radio, the woman said: "There's a lot of these flower TikToks all over the internet
"He interrupted my quiet time, filmed and uploaded a video without my consent, turning it into something it wasn't, and I feel like he is making quite a lot of money through it.
"It's the patronising assumption that women, especially older women, will be thrilled by some random stranger giving them flowers."
She said the influencer asked her if she could hold some flowers while he grabbed a jacket out of his bag. He then walked off and told her she could keep the pretty gift.
But she quickly noticed there was someone filming the encounter a few metres away and when she asked if they were recording her they said 'no'.
Hilariously, the woman said she offered to give the flowers to the person filming because she couldn't be bothered to take them on the train.
She was then shocked to see not only the video going viral on TikTok but there was an article about the encounter as well.
"At first it was just a bit of a joke to me, but then I felt dehumanised after reading the article," she said to the ABC.
"The article said: 'old woman, elderly woman, heartbreaking tale'.
"And they got this picture of me supposedly crying, but it was just a horrible expression. I feel like clickbait."
Harrison Pawluk team has defended the video and said he was inspired to carry out random acts of kindness after a trip to the US.
The team behind the influencer claimed they weren't trying to exchange kindness for internet clout and he was genuinely just wanting to make someone smile.
"Having said that, while he has only so far encountered gratitude, if someone is upset, then they should feel free to personally email him," they said to the ABC.
"He would not want something designed to spread love and compassion to cause anyone concern."
They added that they don't have to ask for consent from people if they are filming in a public space.
