{"id":52740,"date":"2023-11-10T00:11:15","date_gmt":"2023-11-10T00:11:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/11\/10\/the-watermelon-emoji-isnt-just-tiktok-speak-for-palestine-techcrunch\/"},"modified":"2023-11-10T00:11:15","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T00:11:15","slug":"the-watermelon-emoji-isnt-just-tiktok-speak-for-palestine-techcrunch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/11\/10\/the-watermelon-emoji-isnt-just-tiktok-speak-for-palestine-techcrunch\/","title":{"rendered":"The watermelon emoji isn’t just TikTok speak for Palestine | TechCrunch"},"content":{"rendered":"


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On Instagram, infographics about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza are punctuated with the watermelon emoji. In captions of TikTok videos calling for a ceasefire, the emoji replaces words like \u201cPalestine\u201d and \u201cGaza.\u201d X (formerly Twitter) users add the watermelon to their handles to express support for Palestinian independence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The watermelon has long been a symbol of protest for Palestinians, and as social media users <\/span>suspect platforms of censoring content about Gaza<\/span><\/a>, the corresponding emoji is being used in place of the Palestinian flag. Like the flag, the emoji is also red, green and black.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Israel has retaliated against Hamas\u2019 October 7 attack with <\/span>unprecedented force<\/span><\/a> against the Palestinian territory, devastating it with retaliatory airstrikes and a blockade of water, food, medical supplies and electricity. The <\/span>death toll<\/span> has surpassed 10,000 in the past month, Palestinian health authorities report<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Posts about the crisis dominate social media platforms, with many creators opting to use the watermelon emoji instead of certain hashtags that users believe will be flagged or suppressed. TikTok, for example, denies moderating or removing content based on \u201cpolitical sensitivities,\u201d<\/a> and posts that contain divisive tags like #freepalestine or #fromtherivertothesea continue to go viral. Still, the tag <\/span>for the watermelon emoji has over one billion views. While the emoji may be universally used to represent Palestinian resistance to occupation, its meaning isn\u2019t as widely understood \u2014 especially for users who aren\u2019t as familiar with internet culture\u2019s coded language. A Redditor asking about the emoji in <\/span>r\/OutOfTheLoop<\/span><\/a>, for example, said they don\u2019t use TikTok, and couldn\u2019t figure out what the emoji means.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Feel free to use this as your profile picture in solidarity with Palestine I designed in Canva <\/p>\n

Why watermelon you ask? \ud83c\udf49<\/p>\n

View explanation in quoted thread below pic.twitter.com\/XR3o80iAVM<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 \ua731\u1d1c\u1d07\u1d00\u0274\u0274\u1d00\u1d0a\u1d0f\u1d07 \u3004 \ud83c\udff4\u200d\u2620\ufe0f\ufe0f (@sueannajoe_) October 27, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

Online, coded euphemisms known as <\/span>\u201calgospeak\u201d<\/span><\/a> are used to evade content filters. Whether \u201cshadowbanning\u201d \u2014 or limiting the visibility of certain content \u2014 exists is debatable, but the use of these linguistic workarounds is becoming increasingly common on social media, especially when discussing sensitive or divisive topics. Phrases popularized on TikTok, like referring to death as \u201cunaliving\u201d or using the corn emoji to refer to porn and sex work<\/a>, have spread to Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The symbol gained renewed attention on TikTok earlier this week, after a filter that prompts users to trace patterns with a watermelon went viral. Its creator, an augmented reality effects artist who goes by Jourdan Louise, pledged all proceeds from monetizing the filter<\/a> to providing humanitarian aid to Gaza. Through the Effect Creator Rewards program, AR creators are eligible for revenue sharing once their filters are used in at least 200,000 videos.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the video launching \u201cFILTER FOR GOOD,\u201d Jourdan Louise asked followers to use the filter and engage with videos featuring the filter. In the two days since she released the filter, it has been used in over 620,000 videos.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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@xojourdanlouise<\/a> <\/p>\n

USE THIS FILTER \ud83c\udf49 to help the people of Gaza. As an AR creator, I am part of the Effect Creator Rewards program \u2013 basically like the creativity fund but for effect creators. This allows me to earn money for each unique video published using my effects*. I have created this FILTER FOR GOOD effect and will be donating the rewards earned to charities providing aid in Gaza. I know many of us don\u2019t know how to help, but it can be as simple as posting a video with this filter! *Effects only can start earning rewards once 200,000 people have posted a video using it, so we need 199,999 more \u2014 which seems like a lot but it can easily be achieved! Please comments, save, and share to boost and encourage everyone to use this filter \ud83c\udf49 #newfilter<\/a> #effecthouse<\/a> #watermelon<\/a> #free<\/a> #blackgirlsintech<\/a> #activism<\/a> #augmentedreality<\/a> #socialchange<\/a> #filterforgood<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u266c original sound \u2013 nemahsis<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/section>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI believe that an effective way to make an impact is by utilizing what you know, and if you want to involve other people, lean into their known behaviors,\u201d Jourdan Louise said in a <\/span>follow-up video posted Thursday<\/span><\/a>. \u201cI knew I could utilize my skills as a filter creator, with the knowledge that people are going to be using these filters, to create one that has the potential to earn money that can result in direct aid.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Watermelon imagery has represented Palestinian culture and resistance long before algospeak. Like the olive tree, which has <\/span>also become a symbol of Palestinian nationalism<\/span><\/a>, watermelon is used in a variety of Palestinian dishes. Palestinian cuisine is rich with recipes for watermelon-based dishes, according to <\/span>Bon Appetit<\/span><\/a>, including a popular Gazan dish (called fatet ajer, laseema or qursa, depending on how it\u2019s served) that uses unripe baby watermelon stewed with eggplants, tomatoes and peppers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s a widespread belief that the watermelon\u2019s symbolism stems from an outright ban on the Palestinian flag. It\u2019s more complicated than that. In 1967, Israeli authorities issued a military order criminalizing Palestinian gatherings that \u201cmay be construed as political.\u201d The parameters of the order are vague; <\/span>Amnesty International<\/span><\/a> reports that the order effectively banned all protests, including peaceful ones. The display of flags and publication of literature \u201chaving a political significance\u201d was also prohibited under the order, without a permit from the Israeli military.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Palestinians began using national colors in place of the flag to circumvent the ban. Israeli military responded by targeting artists who incorporated red, green and black imagery into their work.\u00a0<\/span>Ceramicist Vera Tamari <\/span>told the Guardian in 2002<\/span><\/a> that enforcement was often \u201cup to the artistic judgment of the particular officer in charge.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s unclear if watermelon specifically was widely used in political artwork during that era. The myth appears to stem from an artist\u2019s retelling of an incident in 1980, when the Israeli army shut down an exhibition that they deemed political because the artwork bore the Palestinian flag\u2019s colors. As <\/span>reported by the National in 2021<\/span><\/a>, Issam Badr, one of the artists featured in the exhibition, allegedly asked an officer, \u201cWhat if I just want to paint a watermelon?\u201d and was told that it would still be confiscated. Sliman Mansour, who was also featured in the exhibition, told the National that it was the officer who mentioned the watermelon first, telling Badr \u201cEven if you paint a watermelon, it will be confiscated.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mansour said that he didn\u2019t recall the use of watermelon specifically as a political motif.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After Israel and the Palestinian Liberation Organization signed the Oslo Accords in 1993, Palestinians <\/span>celebrated<\/span><\/a> by carrying the flag throughout the occupied territories. <\/span>The New York Times<\/span><\/a> reported that young men were once arrested for carrying sliced watermelon in Gaza in a 1993 article, but retracted the detail since they couldn\u2019t verify any instance of it.<\/span><\/p>\n

The watermelon motif as a political statement became commonplace after the <\/span>Second Intifada<\/span><\/a> in the early 2000s. Inspired by a retelling of Mansour\u2019s watermelon anecdote, artist Khaled Hourani created a silkscreen series called <\/span>\u201cThe Story of the Watermelon,\u201d<\/span><\/a> which was published in a 2007 art book about Palestinian culture. He released an isolated print titled \u201cThe Colours of the Palestinian Flag\u201d in 2013, which inspired other Palestinian artists to incorporate watermelon imagery into their work.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Watermelon imagery is especially prevalent this year, as Israeli officials enforce bans on the Palestinian flag. In January, Israel\u2019s security minister said that he ordered police to take down publicly displayed Palestinian flags, equating the flag with \u201cidentification with terrorism\u201d in social media posts<\/a>. By May, there were 11 bills in Israel\u2019s legislature<\/a> that, if passed, would ban the Palestinian flag in various settings, including on\u00a0<\/span>university campuses<\/a>. Watermelon motifs gained traction in wake of the legislative crackdowns, and like the keffiyeh<\/a>, now represent solidarity with Palestinians living under occupation.<\/span><\/p>\n

And amid worldwide calls for a ceasefire in wake of Israel\u2019s response to the Hamas attack, other state governments are targeting on the Palestinian flag. Singapore <\/span>outlawed<\/span><\/a> the public display of symbols related to the war without a permit this week, including flags. The United Kingdom\u2019s Home Secretary Suella Braverman <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> that waving Palestinian flags may be a \u201ccriminal offense\u201d if used to \u201cglorify acts of terrorism.\u201d Last month, Republican Rep. Max Miller <\/span>introduced a measure<\/span><\/a> to ban foreign flags from being displayed in the Capitol building, in response to the Palestinian flag that Rep. Rashida Tlaib displays outside of her office.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The halls of Congress belong to America. They should be reserved for flags that embody our great nation.<\/p>\n

The Palestinian flag should not have a place here.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why I sponsored an appropriations amendment to end this silliness. https:\/\/t.co\/faV28rI5UR<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/XR8BJE4r1y<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Congressman Max Miller (@RepMaxMiller) October 9, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cAlgospeak\u201d often permeates real-world conversations, which take place outside of social platforms\u2019 realm of authority. In this case, however, the popularity of the watermelon emoji is the result of decades of real-world censorship bleeding into online spaces. The emoji represents not only Palestinian resistance to occupation, but also resistance to digital censorship of Palestinian voices. Whether workarounds can actual evade content filters is debatable \u2014 tagging posts as \u201cP@lestine\u201d instead of \u201cPalestine,\u201d for example, may or may not be effective for gaming engagement. But as watermelon motifs become synonymous with Palestinian protest, using the emoji isn\u2019t exactly an insider secret. Like the red, green and black artwork that has defined decades of Palestinian protests, the watermelon emoji is a political statement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n