China Xiaohongshu users unite to help older strangers akin to caring for own parents
- Good Samaritan-like initiative aims to motivate young in China to help older people they do not know who are in need of assistance
A group of young people in China have turned themselves into “shared children” on social media so they can offer assistance to older strangers as if they were their parents.
On the mainland social media platform Xiaohongshu, the hashtag #HelpingEachOthersParents has attracted 6 million views.
Many of those involved have been sharing their experiences or intentions in connection with the innovative pastime.
An influencer called Xiaogang with 580,000 followers, set up an informal scheme to help older people in Beijing.
In a video he posted, he carried heavy groceries for a middle-aged man, helped a woman who was collecting her registration ticket from a machine at a hospital and bought bottled water for a group of cleaners resting at the roadside on a hot day.
Whenever he offered his services, Xiaogang called the people he helped “mum” and “dad” and told them to think of him as their own son.
At the end of his video, he revealed that about 100 people had joined his campaign and had promised to do what he does.
Xiaogang lives about 500km from Shanxi province in northern China where his parents are.
