A Glasgow high school teacher posted a TikTok complaining about Scottish summer weather; the video unexpectedly went viral. The post was shared by a US weather reporter and attracted large numbers of African American viewers astonished to see a Black man speaking with a strong Scottish accent. Black Scottish TikTokers then received many questions from Americans and responded with humorous, high-quality banter, creating the hashtag #blackscottishtiktok and thousands of follow-up posts. The original creator gained nearly 4 million views and over 200,000 followers. The reaction highlighted limited American awareness of UK diaspora communities and surprised viewers on both sides of the Atlantic.
It began with a good-natured rant about the Scottish summer weather and has developed into a global conversation about history, diaspora and diversity on both sides of the Atlantic. Last week, Torgi Squire uploaded a TikTok post that any Scottish parent could relate to: why is it, he asked, that without fail the washout summer weather always improves the week that the kids go back to school?
The post was picked up by a US weather reporter and Squire's comments were suddenly filling with African Americans expressing their amazement and delight at discovering a black man with a strong Scottish accent. But it didn't stop there: black Scots on TikTok found themselves flooded with questions from their American cousins and seized the opportunity to respond with high calibre banter, as #blackscottishtiktok generated thousands more posts.
It's been a whirlwind, says Squire, who teaches design and technology. His original post has racked up nearly 4m views, and he's since welcomed more than 200,000 new followers. Americans are kept in a bit of an echo chamber by their media, and their only point of reference for Scotland is either Braveheart, Brave or Shrek. They don't seem to have much awareness of the diaspora, particularly when it comes to the UK, which is maybe why they've reacted with so much curiosity.
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