Why People Are Boycotting 'Mulan' Following Liu Yifei's Social Media Comments

From Harper's BAZAAR

• Mulan has now been released on Disney+, but protestors have been calling for a boycott of the movie.

• The boycott stems from actress Liu Yifei's public support of the Hong Kong police.

• Liu first revealed her support for the police during Hong Kong's pro-democracy and anti-police brutality protests in 2019.

Mulan has arrived on Disney+ to much fanfare this weekend. However, despite the excitement surrounding the highly-anticipated live-action movie, some people are calling for a boycott of Disney's Mulan.

According to The Guardian, calls for a boycott of Mulan began when the movie's star, Liu Yifei, posted on Chinese social media site Weibo in August 2019. The Disney star wrote, "I also support Hong Kong police. You can beat me up now." According to The Guardian, Liu added, "What a shame for Hong Kong." Meanwhile, The Hollywood Reporter noted that Liu has more than 65 million followers on the site, and added the hashtag #IAlsoSupportTheHongKongPolice and a heart emoji to her post.

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Liu's support of the Hong Kong police came at a time when the organization was being accused of human rights violations against pro-democracy protestors in the country. As reported by the BBC, protesting started because of an extradition bill which would have allowed "criminal suspects to be extradited to mainland China under certain circumstances." Opponents feared that the bill might be used to target particular groups, including journalists and activists, and see individuals subjected to worse treatment. Following action, the bill was suspended, but protests continue, and altercations between police and protestors grew more violent. As a result, Liu's public support of the Hong Kong police has been seen by many as controversial.

Upon the release of Mulan on Disney+, activist Joshua Wong tweeted, "This film is released today. But because Disney kowtows to Beijing, and because Liu Yifei openly and proudly endorses police brutality in Hong Kong, I urge everyone who believes in human rights to #BoycottMulan."

Liu appears to have backed down over her original comments, and in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in February 2020 said, "I think it's obviously a very complicated situation and I'm not an expert... I just really hope this gets resolved soon." Although the actress didn't retract her comments, she said, "I think it's just a very sensitive situation."

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