Episode #45: The End Justifies the Memes
What is the deeper, symbolic meaning of an overturned alms bowl? What reasoning goes into the decision as to whether a protest sign is written in English or Burmese, or as pictograms, or emojis? And how and why has General Min Aung Hlaing’s height become a focus of the protest messaging?
These are just some of the concepts that “Brad” and “May” (not their real names) have begun to explore on their new Facebook page, “Burmese Protest Memes and Signs Translated and Explained: Translating and explaining Burmese memes and protest signs for an English audience.”
Oxford Languages defines a meme as “a humorous image, video, piece of text, etc., that is copied (often with slight variations) and spread rapidly by internet users.” But you probably already knew this; and if you didn’t know what a meme was until just now, then you’ve probably only recently emerged from a decades-long self-meditation retreat in a cave! This interview explores the profound role memes have been playing in the Myanmar protest movement since the military coup took over the country on February 1.
Unlike in other countries, where internet connectivity has been available for a much longer time, in Myanmar, “online culture” is relatively new. As May succinctly explains, “We're the generation that has grown up with internet and social media. And memes are a way to communicate with each other, to share not just jokes, but also feelings. And our Burmese community has always made news for almost any situations. So yeah, memes are perhaps a symbol of what our generation is.”
She shares how even before the coup, meme-sharing in Burmese Facebook groups was common, and that “an image or a short clip has a lot of meaning behind it and how just a glance towards his could explain all that.”
But this embedded meaning in a single glimpse was not at all apparent for Brad, who is not native to the country, culture, and language like May. The first insight he had into the challenge (and power) of understanding Burmese memes came from his confusion after seeing Burmese protest signs held by long-haul truckers that could be translated as “I don't want to go back to driving on husband and wife pan roads.” Of course, without proper cultural context, Brad found the phrase “nonsensical,” but there is a lot of meaning to unpack here. His Burmese girlfriend explained how the “husband and wife snack” is a common item at roadside food stalls, two halves of dough fused together in a dimpled, iron pan. To the Burmese, this pan immediately conjures up images of the large swath of roads in their country that are riddled with potholes. Brad notes that maintenance of these roads had been neglected for decades under the corruption of former military governments, and had finally begun undergoing repairs under the previously elected NLD administration. For the truckers, the phrase was a clever idiom they created on the spot that integrated Burmese linguistics, food, politics, infrastructure, and livelihood into one simple catch-phrase. The fact that it took Brad so long to make sense of the sentence’s meaning—even while being skilled in Burmese language and history—alerted him to the fact that there was merit in exploring the subject of memes further, and from there the page was born.
Brad and May felt that much of the outside world was missing the subtle messaging that protesters were trying to communicate, and hoped that their new page would help in this regard. They note that many protesters do use English language signs when they want communicate their message beyond their borders, but that these messages are not as pregnant with meaning when using their native language.
Interestingly—and mistakenly—some English speakers outside Myanmar’s borders have accused these photos of being “fake news,” asserting that “Burmese, being Asians, don't know English.” To Brad, this was “a phenomenal misunderstanding of history,” and he tried to engage with these comments: “I responded in a couple of cases saying it's not fake, but you don't see the Burmese content, which is plentiful, and is far more innovative and interesting than the English language content. But you don't see it because media companies aren't going to pick it up. Because who would click on that? You don't know what it says; it's not shocking, it’s not vibrant.”
Their page has developed to explaining the deeper, underlying meaning of the many Burmese memes that are now proliferating, both online and in real life today. In doing so, they reveal the many themes that protesters are connecting to their movement, including British colonialism, Burmese Buddhism, ethnic identity, gender issues, sexual orientation, numerology and astrology, and specific events both in the protests as well as recent political incidents connected to the coup.
For May, her own motivation in the work arises from her support of fellow protesters trying to claim their freedom. She notes: “For me personally, I think my courage comes from my patriotism, and my love for the people in the country. I feel responsible for at least helping the country. It also comes from this idea of, ‘We have nothing to lose.’ That we would rather sacrifice this or live our lives and the future generations under this we're doing this for the future generation as well.”
These are inspiring words… all the more powerful in light of the fact that, since this interview, May has gone missing. No one has been able to contact her, and her whereabouts and even basic safety is currently unknown. Brad checks the list of dead and detained every day, and takes some solace in not finding her name included. It is true that many Burmese are now going deep into hiding to avoid arrest, and this often includes extended periods offline. Additionally, the military continues to cut internet options, and now that only broadband is available, many Burmese find themselves cut off. In any case, at the moment no one knows May’s status, and we send our best thoughts and good wishes for her safety at this time.