Help is typically seen as an act of kindness, aimed at supporting those facing hardship. However, when help is offered without a nuanced understanding of the recipients’ specific experiences and identities, it can unintentionally reinforce discrimination – especially for those facing intersectional oppression. By examining a case on the Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu, where users sought to ‘help’ a young girl by discouraging her from marrying an African partner, this study explores how the discriminatory aspects of help intersect with nationalist sentiment to sustain racial hierarchies, reinforce traditional gender roles and uphold nationalist ideals. The study argues that the assistance offered by Chinese social media users – framed in terms of care and protection – was inherently discriminatory, as it positioned the young girl as a dependent figure needing their guidance, rather than recognizing her autonomy and engaging with her as an equal.
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