Pepe The Frog By Matt Furie

Pepe the Frog first appeared in 2005, in a cartoon titled, “Boy’s Club,” by Matt Furie (Milner and Phillips). He spread across 4chan, an online messaging website, as a visual stand-in for emotions (Milner and Phillips). Pepe was first associated with the catchphrase, “Feels good, man” (“Pepe the Frog”). He did not originally have hateful or anti-Semitic implications, according to the Anti-Defamation League in the article, “Pepe the Frog.” (SPD) Internet users now place the frog in a variety of circumstances: sad happenings or realizing something, for example. Many variations are esoteric, resulting in “rare Pepes,” and a majority of the uses are still non-bigoted (“Pepe the Frog”). Milner and Phillips state, “Pepe has only recently been harnessed
It was used in countless other cultures, for around 5,000 years before Adolf Hitler deemed it as the center of the Nazi flag (“History”). The article “History of the Swastika” states that the word swastika actually comes from the Sanskrit term svastika, originally meaning “good fortune.” It was used as a religious symbol that many people used in worship. Possibly originating in Neolithic Eurasia, it might have represented the movement of the sun (“History”). In current day, the symbol is still sacred to Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism (“History”). These religions commonly have it painted on temples and monuments in India. The use of the swastika faded away up until it became popular once more during the late 1800s when German archaeologist Hernrich Schliemann stumbled across the symbol at ancient monuments in current day Turkey, says “History of the Swastika.” Schliemann thought of the hooked cross as a religious symbol from the country’s ancestors, but it was soon taken and used to evoke German nationalist pride. (SPB) Hitler published the book Mein Kampf, which showed the swastika appearing on flags, posters, and armbands; thus, the symbol became most known during that time period surrounding World War II. Jump to today and the swastika is still being used to show Nazism and other various racist beliefs. The swastika has, and with majority belief, will forever be a hate
Denton Jr. points out, for example, that there was debate whether or not anchors and reporters should wear flags or ribbons, immediately after the attacks (11). They could not decide if these symbols were possibly seen as offensive. All major networks, except Fox, decided against wearing flags (Denton Jr. 12). “After all, the news media are supposed to be ‘neutral’, ‘objective’, [and] ‘non-biased’ in perspective,” states Denton Jr. (12). News media also debated over describing the attackers as “terrorists” or “freedom fighters” (Denton Jr. 11). A president is able to evoke key phrases and symbols as well (Denton Jr. 14). Key audiences use the term or representation and create “necessary” images, says Denton Jr. (14). By extension, they create an expectation of actions, solutions, and visions of the future. 9/11 and the events that surrounded it made countless symbols, both positive and hateful