For some in Britain, the EU referendum is a matter of life and death, wealth and destruction, humanity and barbarism. For others, it couldn’t be over soon enough, numbing our collective brains with endless economic exaggerations, baseless fearmongering, and talk of impending doom. But what has the colourful world of memes had to say about the debate?
The friends and foes of the ‘Leave’ campaign
Memes related to ‘Brexit’ are perhaps the greatest in number.
Some supporters of the ‘Leave’ campaign seem to believe England would have a greater chance of winning the World Cup if it left the EU:
Let's Win @BorisJohnson @BBCNews @itvnews @Channel4News @SkyNews @UKIP @Nigel_Farage pic.twitter.com/7eVUlw7s1r
— REPORTER 47 (@REPORTER_47) May 27, 2016
The following meme gets an extra special mention because, shockingly, it appears not to be a joke:
#EURefReady #EUref VE Day June 23 #iVoted Vote out of EU #UKIP pic.twitter.com/JaqeOGK67V
— The Seer (@See_The_Seer) June 6, 2016
And apparently, embracing our “inner Boris” would be a good thing:
EMBRACE YOUR INNER BORIS ! #VoteLeave #LeaveEU #leave #EUref #StrongerIn #Remain #Brexit #Nexit #Grexit #Frexit #EU pic.twitter.com/F0aSe1PIjz
— Chris Neal (@PeaceOutCoUk) May 26, 2016
But there has also been a lot of criticism of the ‘Leave’ campaign, with some reminding us exactly who is leading and supporting the campaign:
In or Out. IDS, Gove and Johnson have argued for years the NHS should be privatised: #EURefReady pic.twitter.com/klFAh0cZGP
— Tom Pride (@ThomasPride) June 6, 2016
Who wants #Brexit?#INorOUT?#VoteLeave #LeaveEU #UKIP #Putin #EDL #BNP #NeoNazis #BloodandHonour #BritainFirst pic.twitter.com/n3mpk7Kgsx
— UKIP Nonsense (@UKIPNFKN) June 5, 2016
At the same time, we’ve seen a lot of talk about the uncertainty surrounding what will happen if Britain leaves the EU:
I'm #EURefReady because every little helps, and the idea of leaving is terrifying… pic.twitter.com/SQ2auroTUz
— Smexible (@roxandsocks) June 6, 2016
Some people have been impressed by the compelling nature of the campaign, though:
@hrtbps I was undecided until I saw this stirring display in Poole High street. pic.twitter.com/kDE2fcBo1M
— James Dwyer (@jdwyerwriter) June 4, 2016
And, of course, what would a serious political debate be without a bit of beaver-related vandalism?
Please help support @AubelFelix's campaign. #VoteBeaver pic.twitter.com/NXjE0JwakF
— Hedd Gwynfor (@heddgwynfor) June 2, 2016
How about the ‘Remain’ camp?
Well there’s been very little enthusiasm here, and mostly quite serious memes like this one:
Dear #Brexit people;
Priti Patel, IDS, Boris, Gove & co. Are lying to you about EU myths.#StrongerIn pic.twitter.com/yC3hxSQmep— John Clarke (@JohnClarke1960) May 26, 2016
But there has been criticism of George Osborne and others in the ‘Remain’ camp for scaremongering about possible economic scenarios in the future:
Osborne & Cameron, desperate to keep their jobs, LIE & LIE. #Brexit bad for the economy? No. https://t.co/fipXqSaBkg pic.twitter.com/FB0kvKnPHV
— Edward Anthony Rayne (@rayne_ea) May 28, 2016
Other ‘Remain’ leaders haven’t exactly been popular, either:
Would you buy a car from these people ?#EURef #VoteLeave #Brexit #remain #INorOUT #Labour #VoteOUT #Cameron pic.twitter.com/2CVrLTQ9jp
— TheOrdinaryMan (@theordinaryman2) June 6, 2016
In fact, some are engaging in some wishful thinking based on the possibility of David Cameron leaving Downing Street in the event of ‘Brexit’:
David Cameron is #EURefReady pic.twitter.com/x3VKxOt7Uo
— ⒷritainsⒷestⒸhoice (@BBCPropaganda) June 6, 2016
What all of these images show is that, overall, the EU debate online has so far consisted of personality-based arguments, a fair bit of piss taking and, quite frankly, some very worrying uses of Photoshop.
Here’s looking forward to more of this in the coming days…
Find out what’s really going on:
– Research views for and against Brexit.
– Read about Diem25, which is trying to bring about real democratic change within the EU.
– Full Fact is fact-checking the EU referendum here.
Featured image via Dave Kellam/Wikimedia Commons.
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