TikTok influencer apologises for dancing to the Quran

TikTok is an absolutely lawless place.

It’s the peak of the attention economy, where videos are ranked solely on views.

Which is why it can give birth to some… misguided trends, like influencers pretending to be domestic abuse victims to “raise awareness” or the ‘#coronaviruschallenge’.

But the latest TikTok to go viral for all the wrong reasons is just plain offensive.

Major TikTok influencer, 17 year-old Nessa Barrett has been heavily criticised after uploading a video showing her and a friend dancing to the sound of the Quran is read.

The Quran is the central and holiest religious text of the Islamic faith so, naturally, Barrett’s video has caused widespread offense.

Immediately, the post received backlash, resulting in Barrett turning off the comments and eventually deleting the original upload, reports Business Insider.

Barrett – who has 6.1 million followers on TikTok – defended herself in an Instagram live stream saying that she and a friend had come across a clip of a man ‘singing’ and thought it would be funny to use it as the soundtrack to a TikTok.

She claims the pair did not realise he was reciting passages from the holy text.

Barrett also said that she was aware people could be offended because “her step-siblings [and] stepmom” are “from Egypt”.

“My step-siblings and stepmom are from Egypt and all that stuff,” Barrett said in an apology video. “I know that it could have been taken offensively. I just want to apologise for anyone who took it that way and was offended. I think… I’m sorry for anyone who practices that religion”.

However, many are still unimpressed...

“This is like saying ‘sorry for saying the n word my stepmom is black’ HAVING A MUSLIM STEPMOM DOESNT JUSTIFY WHAT U DID,” read one comment on an Instagram post of her apology.

Others didn’t believe she was unaware of the origin of the music.

Someone pointed out discrepancies between Barrett's previous posts and her claims of ignorance.

And others said the cycle of ignorance from prominent social media influencers was becoming wearing.

Meanwhile Nessa hasn’t tweeted since posting the video. Will anything be learned from this?