Hong Kong extradition law: As protesters march against the fugitive bill, at least there is humour with the best anti-ELAB memes

Everyone knows Spongebob’s theme song - it’s a childhood sing-along favourite! The lyrics “I can’t hear you” encapsulate Hongkongers’ feelings in the current situation - we feel like we aren’t being heard by our government. 

Turn Up the Volume is a meme popularly used as a parody of emotional reactions to music. The inclusion of the song Sing Hallelujah to the Lord conveys the values of Hong Kong protestors. For many, it surpasses religious meaning and represents hope, peace, and harmony for the community. Ultimately, this meme depicts the significance the song has had in the protests. 

This side-by-side comparison of Carrie Lam and a passionate protester highlights Hong Kong’s need for a caring, empowered leader. Lam, dubbed the “mother of Hong Kong”, looks stern and disinterested whereas the other woman delivered a moving speech to police officers during the protests, asking “Can you meet me halfway?”, and offering the riot-gear clad officers an olive branch. She’s the real mother figure we need. 

In response to the protesters’ pleas for withdrawal of the extradition bill, Lam postponed the hearing in hopes of appeasing the crowds. This meme portrays the frustration that protestors feel that she only postponed, rather than retracted it - what many view as an attempt to fool the public into forgetting about it.

In this scene from Avengers: Endgame, a massive army of superheroes unite to fight the villain, Thanos. The caption protrays the extradition bill as the villain that Hong Kong is uniting to fight against. 

The Trojan Horse is a historical symbol of trickery and deceit. The open castle door represents protesters’ hopes that the bill will be suspended. Lam is presenting the horse, disguised as the postponement of the bill, to the protesters, when in fact it is really just a tactic to make us forget about the end goal. 

This Eric André meme is an internet fave. In the original, the comedian is shocked when the shot he just fired actually hurts the victim. In the Hong Kong protest version, André represents the police who are surprised when the protesters react aggressively in response to their tear gas and rubber bullet attacks. 

Ouch, that’s gonna leave a mark! This scathing meme depicts native Chinese dog breeds, with one of them being the Hong Kong government. The comparison is due to the government’s postponement, rather than cancellation, of the extradition bill, which some people have suggested is at Beijing’s instruction. 

This famous scene from TV show The Office is intended to convey the message that, once the extradition bill passes, China will finally have the ability to “kill” Hong Kong’s freedom. 

The following three memes were created by YP cadet Divina Samtani.

The blue button meme represents the lack of trust Hongkongers have for Lam because whatever she says is seen as a message coming directly from Beijing. Some would call the reaction to “close down everything and protest” a bit dramatic, but it shows the fear and worry the public have about their freedom being stolen by China. 

This meme is from Lam’s perspective, and represents her misguided determination to pass the bill. It represents the lack of care and understanding she has for the people’s opinions.

The mocking Spongebob meme is used to show the doubt that Hongkongers feel about towards Lam’s intentions. Her actions and words have portrayed her as a puppet of Beijing, and so the meme is used to mock her statement about not being controlled by the mainland