Mao Survivor Condemns China Overreaction to Mbappe Meme

Clear Facts

• Kylian Mbappe laughed at a meme featuring his face on an image resembling Mao Zedong, prompting China to impose TV blackouts and sponsor cancellations.
• Xi Van Fleet, who endured Mao’s Cultural Revolution, stated that Mao killed up to 80 million Chinese and labeled him a tyrant and mass murderer.
• La Liga, Mbappe, and Real Madrid issued public apologies after Chinese state media demanded them.

Global soccer star Kylian Mbappe’s laughter at a meme involving China’s late dictator Mao Zedong triggered days of backlash in China. Sponsors pulled out and state television blacked out La Liga matches.

Xi Van Fleet, a Chinese-American author and anti-communist activist, spoke out on Fox Business Thursday against the manufactured outrage.

“This is really interesting, because most of the people in China have no idea what Mbappe said,” she began. “They were told that he insulted China. You have no freedom of speech, you have no freedom of press, you don’t know what really happened. You just do what the government tells you to do.”

Van Fleet lived through Mao’s rule and rejects any notion that he was merely a stern leader.

“Is Mao not a dictator? I lived my entire youth under Mao, and there is no one who doesn’t know anyone else who died because of Mao’s rule. He killed up to 80 million Chinese. Calling him a dictator is not even appropriate. He is a tyrant, and he is a mass murderer.”

The controversy began on a French talk show when Mbappe chuckled at a meme showing his face superimposed on an image resembling Mao. His popular nickname “The Dictator” fueled the joke.

China’s rulers responded by dropping sponsors and halting broadcasts. La Liga issued the first apology, followed by Mbappe and Real Madrid.

Van Fleet believes the apologies were unnecessary and urged a different course.

“The truth will set you free; know who Mao was and then you should stand by what you said,” she explained.

Let us know what you think, please share your thoughts in the comments below.