Alt-Right Pepe The Frog Symbol Appears In Hong Kong Protests – But Not As Hate Symbol
Pepe the Frog graffiti outside the Central Government complex in Hong Kong, August 18, 2019. Image by Getty
By Ari Feldman August 20, 2019
By the middle of the frenetic summer of 2016, the alt-right had become a term on everyone’s lips. The Forward published a list of must-know terms and symbols used by the alt-right for its cultural warfare on liberal ideals and racial diversity. At the bottom of that list: Pepe the Frog, an uncannily part-human-part-frog cartoon often used as a stand-in for Donald Trump, or depicted gassing Jews or shooting immigrants trying to cross the border.
That September, the Anti-Defamation League labeled Pepe a hate symbol.
Three years later, and Pepe has landed in Hong Kong amid a summer of pro-democracy protests. But Pepe isn’t there as a hate symbol: Rather, he is a kind-of mascot for the largely leaderless movement. Many protesters had no idea of Pepe’s fraught early career as an internet meme.
“It has nothing to do with the far-right ideology in the state,” one person wrote on an anonymous forum used by protesters. “It just looks funny and captures the hearts of so many youngsters. It is a symbol of youth participation in this movement.”
Pepe has become a protester. A pack of special emojis for Telegram, the secure messaging service, features Pepe in a yellow hardhat, similar to the one worn by many protesters. He has also been depicted as a journalist, with “PRESS” written on his hat, and a first-aid worker.
“To me, Pepe is just a Hello Kitty-like character,” Mari Law, a protester, told the Times.
Pepe had rosier origins, as well. He was created as a simple internet cartoon character. In 2017, Pepe’s creator, Matt Furie, symbolically killed off Pepe in a comic strip, as a protest against Pepe’s appropriation by the far right. Furie and the ADL had tried to team up to #SavePepe with a failed social media campaign.
“I think we can redefine Pepe in this movement,” Law said.
Ari Feldman is a staff writer at the Forward. Contact him at feldman@forward.com or follow him on Twitter @aefeldman
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