Internet memes have the power to unite and bring people together, albeit in different ways. And in expression of their resistance to recent political moves being made by the government, protesters have adopted Pepe the Frog as their symbol.
When Dota 2’s premier tournament, The International, started on Monday night, the English-language broadcast featured an analyst desk full of experts. Among them was Croatian analyst Dominik “Lacoste” Stipic, who was wearing a Pepe the Frog pin. Considering that The International 2019 is being hosted in Shanghai, that pin is more important than you might think.
Pepe the Frog has a very complicated history. In America, and much of the English-language internet, he’s gone from a harmless meme to a hate symbol and back — depending on whom you ask. In Hong Kong, his recent history has been just as complicated, albeit in a different direction. Over the last several months, Hong Kong protesters have adopted the meme as a symbol of resistance.
(Image credit: Wikimedia Commons)
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It's interesting to see the appropriation of this character by the alt-right, and then the subsequent re-appropriation!
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Someone once said that Facists would take what you love and twist it to their own ends but it seems you can twist right back and take their symbols and make them your own. The real loser though is the cartoonist who made Pepe. Sure he's getting paid for his work now but it has to be hard to have your art become something you didn't intent. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-48607430
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