A ban on TikTok may be imminent in the United States.

As AFROTECH™ previously reported, a 12-page bill was proposed by the House of Representatives to eliminate its use and access in the United States if its China-based parent company ByteDance doesn’t sell the platform. This would cause great disruption to many as more than 150 million individuals in the United States are TikTok users, according to the social platform’s website.

The bill, which was introduced as the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, serves to “protect the national security of the United States from the threat posed by foreign adversary controlled applications,” per CBS News. If the bill is green lit by the Senate and President Joe Biden and signed into law, ByteDance will be required to sell the platform within 180 days — or it will be banned from distributing the app and any others through its subsidiaries or firms “controlled by a foreign adversary.”

On March 13, 2024, the House of Representatives passed the bill on a 352-65 vote, CNN notes.

“The House passed the bill in a decisive and bipartisan fashion and it’s now appropriate for the Senate to evaluate the merits of the legislation,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) said during a press briefing following the vote, according to NBC News.

The vote is garnering mixed reactions from lawmakers and online users.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), who voted in favor of the bill, said on the House floor, “This is not an attempt to ban TikTok. It’s an attempt to make TikTok better.”

However, Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) voted against the bill and stated, “As the ranking member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations, I know all too well the threat China poses here at home — banning TikTok and limiting the freedoms of Arizonans before exploring other options is not the answer.”

He added, “It’s vital we find a balance that both protects our national security interests and respects our fundamental rights. This is not that.”

Educator Nina Turner took to Twitter and wrote, “The House of Representatives just passed a bill that could ban TikTok. Not raising the minimum wage. Not lowering healthcare costs. Not lowering housing costs. Not lowering childcare costs. TikTok.”

TikTok has shared a statement emphasizing that its executives hope the Senate “will consider the facts.”

“This process was secret and the bill was jammed through for one reason: it’s a ban,” a TikTok spokesperson said in a statement, according to CNN. “We are hopeful that the Senate will consider the facts, listen to their constituents, and realize the impact on the economy, 7 million small businesses, and the 170 million Americans who use our service.”