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Kenya: Another Year, Another Crazy Online Challenge… but Why?

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4 years ago

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Whether it is digesting a spoonful of ground cinnamon for 60 seconds without water, as was in 2012 or performing self-harm acts dared by users in an online game as was in 2019, millennials on the internet seem to be on the race to curate the next life-threatening viral challenge to satisfy their adrenaline rush.

This year’s challenge began when a video of a crowd gathered around a woman daring to ascent up a wobbly stack of blue and black milk crates was posted online.

The woman dressed in a sports bra, leggings and with pink hair confidently began her ascent only to fall on her third step, sending the crates toppling across the lawn.

The internet consequently dabbed it, ‘The Milk Crates Challenge.’

On Sunday, TikTok disabled users’ ability to search for ‘milk crate challenge’ due to the potential dangers associated with the self-imposed contest.

The daredevilry, which first gained popularity in the US and quickly spread across the globe, left participants, in most cases, physically injured or worse.

“TikTok prohibits content that promotes or glorifies dangerous acts, and we remove videos and redirect searches to our community guidelines to discourage such content. We encourage everyone to exercise caution in their behaviour, whether online or off,” A spokesman for the popular video- sharing app explained.

The Milk Crate Challenge

The ban came after several doctors and health workers across the globe raised concerns over the safety of the challenge.

But the ban by TikTok consequently saw the ‘madness’ spread to other video-sharing platforms.

Users are now posting their videos on other platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, some garnering millions of views.

The Milk Crate Challenge joins a list of long viral antics such as the Cinnamon Challenge, the Momo Challenge and the Ice and Salt Challenge that have spread across various social platforms.

And while only few Kenyans dared to participate in the Milk Crate Challenge, the question that has remained unanswered to many is why are young people across the globe incessantly participating in dangerous antics?

While it is not an area of much study, experts opine that brain development could be a contributor.

“A teenager’s brain is still developing. There is the part of the brain that handles rational thinking called the pre-frontal cortex which does not fully develop until mid-20s,” Nuru Amin a psychologist based in Nairobi and founder of Mind over Matter told the Nation.