Corona-Jihad Memes: The Shifting Iconology of Islamophobia from Hindu Nationalists

What is it about?

This article shows how Muslim male characters are represented in the so-called Corona-Jihad memes, a sub-set of anti-Muslim images which went viral among social media users in South Asia and beyond. The article argues that while markers such as clothes or facial hair were used in popular culture -- such as comics, memes, or cinema-- to separate between Hindu and Muslim characters, in recent times there has been a shift towards using stereotypical "Arab-looking" characters borrowed from transnational memes mainly produced in North America and Western Europe. This marks a process of creating a racial difference among South Asian Muslims-- claiming that Muslims are essentially different from Hindus and other religious groups in India. In addition, the article shows how earlier Indian strategies of representation are used by North American white supremacists to point to non-Muslim politicians of the political left who they see as pro-Muslim. Just as anti-Muslim ideology is transnational, so are these memes. Users borrow and build on each others' strategies to communicate political messages as memes.

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