Free Palestine

About

Free Palestine, which is also known in the longer form as From The River To The Sea, Palestine Will Be Free, is a catchphrase and slogan said about the country of Palestine as a geopolitical statement. The phrase is often said when referring to the Gaza Strip and related areas, as well as the decades-long conflict between Palestine and Israel. After the October 6th start of the 2023 Israel-Hamas Conflict, the phrase became increasingly more prevalent on social media and the internet in general, with banners and signs being made showing the slogan and people chanting it at sporting events and protests. The motto has also garnered controversy among many, particularly those who are pro-Israel or those who perceive pro-Palestinian supporters as being pro-Hamas. Additionally, "Free Palestine" has been referenced in numerous memes over the years, especially after October 2023.

Origin

For many years prior to the October 6th, 2023, escalation of force between the two factions, "Free Palestine" was associated with an organization that was founded back in 2003. This organization, called the "Free Palestine Movement" was spearheaded and led by Yasser Qashlaq^[1] and still operates as of January 2024.

Days before October 6th, 2023, the phrases "Free Palestine" and "From The River To The Sea, Palestine Will Be Free" were trending on German social media due to a protest that occurred in Germany. On October 2nd, X user @zoolooy^[2] uploaded footage taken from protestors who were arrested by German police after chanting the slogan and calling for Palestine to be free (shown below).

Spread

On October 6th, 2023, after news had broken out about the escalation between the two sides, the X account @TorahJudaism^[3] uploaded the first viral instance of the hashtag "#FreePalestine" amid the conflict — a reposted video^[4] from the YouTube channel TRT World uploaded on May 13th, 2021, in which Orthodox Jews are giving supportive messages to the people of Palestine. This reupload by @TorahJudaism would go on to receive over 13,000 likes, 1 million views and 5,300 QRTs in four months (shown below).

In the weeks following the initial attacks, protests and demonstrations began to take hold in which the phrase and chant were on display. On October 15th, 2023, X users @sadiafarooq7861^[5] and @ZynabAlAziz^[6] uploaded photos of the two phrases in action, with a picture of a raised fist being shown in the colors of the Palestinian flag and "Free Palestine" painted on a building, as well as a demonstrator at a protest holding up a depiction of the Palestinian flag with the phrase written across it (shown below, left and right).

Usage In Memes

While "Free Palestine" has been referenced in many memes prior to the events in late 2023, the phrase saw a notable uptick around this time online. For example, on October 18th, 2023, a since-deleted Redditor made a post with the slogan using the Squidward's Lounge Chair meme to the /r/dankmemes^[7] subreddit, receiving nearly 3,000 upvotes and 460 comments in three months (seen below, left).

On November 28th, Redditor Veer_Savage_8 made a post to the /r/okbuddyretard^[8] subreddit featuring a Twitter screenshot of someone making a "Free Palestine" joke, receiving over 1,100 upvotes and 20 comments prior to its removal by moderators (seen below, right).

Nyan Cat Controversy

On November 6th, 2023, the original saraj00n YouTube channel, which first combined the Nyan Cat animation with the "Nyanyanyanyanyanyanya!" song into one video, broke years of silence to post a video supporting the Palestinian cause and call for a ceasefire in the 2023 Israel-Hamas Conflict.^[9] While some online expressed support for the video, others criticized it (examples shown below).^[10][11]

In the days following, Torres, the artist who drew the original Nyan Cat, addressed the controversy and then stated on his X / Twitter account that the video was moved to a new channel dedicated to Nyan Cat (seen below).^[12]

On November 17th, 2023, Torres then told GotFunnyPictures in an article covering the controversy:

Regarding the video, in recent years the owner of the channel chose to license out their page to studios unrelated to Nyan Cat. This resulted in a number of unrelated videos appearing on the channel since 2011, causing confusion among fans. To stay true to the original Nyan Cat spirit, we've recently established an official Nyan Cat YouTube page. This step is aimed at making it simpler for fans to locate and enjoy authentic Nyan Cat content. The classic video has found a new home on its official YouTube page.

Various Examples

Related Memes / Events

Eve Barlow / "Eve Fartlow"

Eve Barlow's "Eve Fartlow" Article refers to a column written by music journalist and outspoken Zionist Eve Barlow in which she detailed the consequences she'd faced on social media for tweeting openly in support of Israel during the May 2021 bombings between Palestine and Israel. She compared the consequences she'd faced to a pogrom and a digital lynching, but was notably annoyed by the fact that people mass-replied "Eve Fartlow" to her posts.

donatella VERSACE 💜

donatella VERSACE 💜 refers to memes and jokes made in reference to a memorable comment posted by fashion designer Donatella Versace on a post by model Bella Hadid. After Bella Hadid posted an image in support of Palestine on Valentine's Day in 2022, Versace replied with an unrelated comment that read, "donatella VERSACE 💜." The comment often makes a recurrence in popular culture, with people making jokes about the event on Twitter and TikTok in consecutive months.

Roblox Pro-Palestine Protests

Roblox Pro-Palestine Protests refers to protests held in support of freeing Palestine in relation to the Hamas vs. Israel conflict in the video game Roblox, specifically on the server "Dataran Tanjung Mas" by Tanah Melayu Official. In October 2023, a video of Roblox players protesting on the server went viral on TikTok, gaining viral spread to sites like X (formerly Twitter) and gaining widespread media coverage.

Ninjamuffin Palestine Joke / Newgrounds and Twitter Likes Controversy

The Ninjamuffin Palestine Joke and Newgrounds and Twitter Likes Controversy refers to backlash towards Friday Night Funkin' developer ninja_muffin99 after he both made what was considered by some to be an inappropriate joke about Palestine in regards to the 2023 Hamas vs. Israel Conflict and liked and favorited several pieces of rule 34 fan art, including aged-up artwork of underage anime characters on Twitter and Newgrounds. The controversy began in late December 2023.

Search Interest

External References