Tigrigna Memes: Subaltern Satires as Everyday Resistance to Power
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Date
2023-06
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Addis Ababa Unversity
Abstract
This study investigates how Tigrayan youth within the Facebook group, Tigrigna Meme, have
employed internet memes as a form of everyday resistance against dominant narratives and
powers after the Pretoria Cessation of Hostilities Agreement (CoHA), in the context of the
2020-2022 war in northern Ethiopia. Drawing on the works of Gayatri C. Spivak and Antonio
Gramsci, the concept of subalternity is applied to these Tigrayan youth in the group.
Specifically, the research examines the role of memes in subaltern peacebuilding efforts and
how they reflect cultural evolution. The researcher uses qualitative content analysis in
conjunction with a Facebook image-searching algorithm to identify relevant memes. Through
analysis of these memes, the study reveals that Tigrayan subaltern groups perceive the Tigray
People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) as manipulative and incompetent while viewing the
Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF), the Eritrean government, and Amhara forces as
groups who have blatantly violated the Ethiopian federal government’s narrative of territorial
integrity and countering extremism. The voices of these subalterns provide unique insights into
their experiences of the war and valuable insights into peace and security studies for guiding
post-war reconstruction policy. The study endeavors to make a significant contribution toward
promoting diversity in the efforts for peace, security, social cohesion, and stability in
contemporary Ethiopia, particularly its Tigray region.
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Keywords
Tigrigna Meme, Subalternity, Satire, Everyday Resistance, and Subversion and Transgression.