A new parental rights group launching Wednesday is hitting its stride straight away with a million-dollar ad campaign to warn parents of the dangers posed to their children by TikTok, the Chinese-owned viral video app currently fighting for its life in the United States.
The American Parents Coalition — or APC — was launched by parental rights advocate Alleigh Marré who will serve as the group's executive director. According to a press release from the nascent organization, APC will work to "put parents back in the driver's seat through public policy efforts, local and community activism" and demand "further transparency from the institutions influencing our children."
Citing threats from government, schools, and doctors, APC says it plans to focus its efforts on "restoring and expanding parental rights across each of these sectors."
"For the sake of our children and generations to come, we must return parents to the drivers' seat. American Parents Coalition will work tirelessly to make this happen."
— American Parents Coalition (@USAParent) March 20, 2024
- @alleighmarre https://t.co/dxJ0vRCOOK
"Parents across our country are under siege, constantly at battle with corporate interests, activists, and institutions who wish to usurp our parental authority," Marré said in a statement provided to Townhall. "From family outings to school field trips to doctors' visits, our children are more at risk than ever of being exposed to malicious political agendas and inappropriate situations."
"For the sake of our children and generations to come, we must return parents to the driver’s seat," Marré urged. "American Parents Coalition will work tirelessly to make this happen."
As its first major action, APC is launching the "TikTok is Poison" campaign with a seven-figure ad buy to raise awareness about the dangers of the app that is "increasingly pervasive" in American life, especially so among children.
NEW: TikTok poses one of the greatest threats to our children. It is leading to major physical and psychological harm.🧵 pic.twitter.com/Qyf9caAlQV
— Alleigh Marré (@alleighmarre) March 20, 2024
Emphasizing that TikTok "lacks adequate parental controls for minors" and "uses addictive algorithms to elevate dangerous and inappropriate content — all while collecting vast amounts of personal data from its users, including minors," APC is calling on parents to stand up and make their voice heard as Congress considers a bill which would require TikTok's Chinese owners to sell the app to a trusted buyer or face a nationwide ban in the U.S.
"As parents, we would never allow our children to spend time around people who speak positively about suicide or encourage anorexia," Marré said in a statement on APC's "TikTok is Poison" campaign.
"Yet these dangerous themes reach millions of impressionable children and teenagers every day on TikTok. Backed by the Chinese Communist Party, TikTok has given America’s youth access to pornography and propaganda right at their fingertips – jeopardizing their sanity and safety with its addictive algorithms," emphasized Marré. "We are calling on all parents to help us stop this digital poison."