Perceiving Protest Through Memes: Multidimensional Influence of Memes in the Dynamic of Student Protest in Bangladeshi Context: A Thematic Analysis and Survey

Mashfia Afrin

doi:10.18535/sshj.v8i08.1272

Abstract

This study examines the influence of memes on the dynamic of the 2024 student protest in Bangladesh. This research aims to understand how themes of memes can contribute to large-scale participation and sustained involvement in a movement. An inductive thematic analysis was utilized using 30 pro-movement memes circulated on Facebook during the protest timeline, which was complemented by survey data from 80 participants who were actively involved in the protest. It was found that the memes had five key themes that were pivotal in mobilizing and sustaining student participation. This study concludes that the memes demonstrated their effectiveness in the dynamic of this social movement.

Keywords

irregular migrationgender dynamicsmigration governanceNigeria-Libya route

References

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[refR-1] Bayerl, P. S., & Stoynov, L. (2016). Revenge by Photoshop: Memefying police acts in the public dialogue about injustice. New media & society, 18(6), 1006-1026. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814554747DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-2] Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3, 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oaDOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-3] Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2012). Thematic analysis. American Psychological Association.Google Scholar ↗

[refR-4] Cancelas-Ouviña, L. P. (2021). Humor in times of COVID-19 in Spain: Viewing coronavirus through memes disseminated via WhatsApp. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 611788. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.611788DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-5] Dawkins R (1979) The Selfish Gene. New York: Oxford University PressGoogle Scholar ↗

[refR-6] Dixon, S. J. (2023, December 7). Countries with the most Facebook users 2023. Statista. https:// www.statista.com/statistics/268136/top-15-countries-based-on-number-of-facebook-users/mGoogle Scholar ↗

[refR-7] Dyuti, Shahla Shahnaz. "Exploring the role of facebook pages during the mass student protest for road safety in Bangladesh." International Journal of Social Media and Online Communities (IJSMOC) 12, no. 2 (2020): 61-82.Google Scholar ↗

[refR-8] https://doi.org/10.4018/IJSMOC.202007010DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-9] Hasnat, S., & Martínez, A. R. (2024, August 5). What we know about the ouster of Bangladesh’s leader. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/article/bangladesh-student-protests.htmlGoogle Scholar ↗

[refR-10] Maniruzzaman, T. (1976). Bangladesh in 1975: The Fall of the Mujib Regime and Its Aftermath. Asian Survey, 16(2), p.119. https://doi.org/10.2307/2643140DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-11] Penney, J. (2020). ‘It’s so hard not to be funny in this situation’: Memes and humor in US youth online political expression. Television & New Media, 21(8), 791-806. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527476419886068DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗

[refR-12] Shifman L (2013) Memes in a digital world: Reconciling with a conceptual troublemaker. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication 18 (3): 362-377. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcc4.12013DOI ↗Google Scholar ↗