From Paris to Rome, by the use of Jakarta and New York, within the squares the place the demonstrations are held, a surprising flag has dawned. With its grinning cranium and straw hat with crimson ribbons, the brand from the preferred “One Piece” manga is immediately recognizable and has been waved via younger protesters calling for exchange in contemporary months.
In Kathmandu, Nepal, the place anti-government anger peaked in September 2025, the flag from the preferred Jap manga One Piece was an icon of the rebellion as flames unfold throughout the Singha Durbar Palace, Nepal’s seat of energy.
Jolly Roger from the Straw Hat Pirates hovers out of doors the Singh Durbar after other folks set hearth to the Nepalese authorities headquarters in Kathmandu. Sunil Pradhan/Anadolu by the use of Getty Pictures
What started as the brand of a fictional pirate team born just about 3 a long time in the past has turn out to be an impressive image of youth-led resistance, rising in protests in Indonesia and Nepal, the Philippines and France.
As a media and democracy professional, I see the unfold of this symbol — which has moved from the pages of manga to the squares of protests — for example of the way Technology Z is redefining the cultural vocabulary of dissent.
Filipinos wave the One Piece flag throughout an anti-corruption protest at Rizal Park on September 21, 2025 in Manila, Philippines. Ezra Acaian/Getty Pictures Popular culture as a method of political expression
One Piece gave the impression similtaneously Technology Z; it was once created in 1997 via Jap manga artist Eiichiro Oda.
It has since offered greater than 500 million copies and holds the Guinness International Report for best-selling e book.
It has spawned hit tv sequence, live-action films and an business price greater than US$20 billion, with products licensing on my own bringing in an estimated US$720 million every 12 months for Bandai Namco, the corporate preferrred recognized for the Pac-Guy and Tekken video video games.
On this manga, we observe the pirate Monkey D. Luffy and his Straw Hat team as he demanding situations the corrupt global authorities whilst in search of freedom and journey.
For fanatics, the One Piece flag isn’t insignificant, it’s a symbol of defiance and perseverance. Luffy’s talent to conquer his bodily limits after eating the paranormal fruit has turn out to be an impressive metaphor for resilience, whilst his steadfast pursuit of freedom in opposition to all odds resonates with younger other folks working in political environments marked via corruption, inequality, and over the top authoritarianism.
When protesters undertake this flag, they aren’t simply bringing in a cultured part from pop culture, they’re depending on a story this is already understood via thousands and thousands of other folks.
The flag has began showing at protests lately. It was once waved throughout the 2023 “Free Palestine” demonstration in Indonesia and the similar 12 months in New York throughout the pro-Palestinian demonstration.
Nevertheless it was once in Indonesia, in August 2025, that the flag in reality took off politically. There, protesters followed it to specific their frustration with authorities insurance policies and their rising discontent with corruption and inequality. This coincided with authorities calls to display patriotism throughout independence celebrations, polishing the distinction between professional nationalism and standard dissent.
The One Piece flag was an emblem of the Indonesian protests in August 2025. Dika/AFP
The motion won momentum when the government reacted strongly via criticizing the usage of the flag, inadvertently drawing extra consideration to the logo. Executive officers characterised the protests as a risk to nationwide solidarity, whilst protesters considered them as a sound expression of political frustration.
Touring flag
The velocity with which One Piece’s Jolly Roger unfold throughout borders displays Gen Z’s virtual upbringing. They’re the primary cohort to develop up solely on-line, immersed in memes, anime and international leisure franchises. Their political conversation depends upon what researchers name “networked publics,” communities that shape and function thru virtual platforms reasonably than thru formal organizations.
On this context, harmony does now not require club in a birthday party or ideology. Quite, it’s in accordance with shared cultural references. A meme, gesture, or flag can immediately put across that means throughout linguistic, non secular, or geographic divides. This type of bonding depends upon shared cultural codes that let younger other folks to spot with every different even if their political methods range.
Social networks give this harmony ordinary scope and velocity. Movies of Indonesians waving the flag were pulled and shared on TikTok and Instagram, achieving audiences a long way past their authentic context. When the logo gave the impression in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, in September, it already carried the air of secrecy of younger revolt.
In Nepal, the flag has been related to anger over youngsters unemployment and the ostentatious wealth of political dynasties. In Indonesia, it mirrored disillusionment with patriotic rituals that gave the impression hole within the context of corruption. The 2 actions have been motivated via very other reasons, however, in each instances, the flag functioned as open code: customizable in the community, however right away comprehensible in different places.
A part of the flag’s effectiveness comes from its ambiguity. Not like the birthday party emblem, the One Piece flag comes from pop culture, making it tough for governments to take away with out taking a look authoritarian. Throughout the most recent protests in Indonesia, government confiscated the banners and known as their use treason. However such repressive measures simplest higher the disappointment of the protesters.
A flag flies amid protests within the Philippines on September 21, 2025 @rimurutempestuh/okay When Fiction Invades Fact
The One Piece flag is not the one one that is been reinvented as an emblem of resistance.
In actions world wide, popular culture and virtual tradition have turn out to be robust sources for activists. In Chile and Beirut, protesters wore Joker mask to characterize their anger at corruption and inequality. In Thailand, protesters became to “Hamtaro,” a youngsters’s hamster caricature, parodying its theme track and preserving crammed animals to mock political leaders.
This mixture of politics, leisure and private id displays a hybrid media atmosphere the place symbols from fan tradition acquire energy. They’re simple to acknowledge, adapt and protect in opposition to state repression.
On the other hand, cultural resonance isn’t sufficient to give an explanation for this insanity. The “One Piece” flag was once very a success as it mirrored the actual discontent of the folks. In Nepal, the place youngsters unemployment exceeds 20 p.c and migration for paintings is commonplace, protesters related the brand with slogans equivalent to “Generation Z will not be silent” and “Our future is not for sale.”
In Indonesia, some protesters argued that the nationwide flag was once “too sacred” to fly in a corrupt device, the usage of the pirate flag as a remark of disillusionment.
The unfold of the flag additionally displays a broader shift in the way in which protest concepts go borders. Previously, sit-ins, marches or starvation moves ruled the media area. Nowadays, symbols and visible references from global tradition are those that flow into the quickest. They may be able to adapt to native struggles whilst closing immediately recognizable in different places.
One Piece flag, positioned in entrance of a highschool in France throughout a protest. Pat Batard/Hans Lucas/AFP
The flag’s adventure from Asian streets to demonstrations in France and Slovakia displays the level to which the grammar of dissent has turn out to be globalized.
For these days’s younger activists, tradition and politics are inseparable. The virtual era has created a era that communicates its discontent thru memes, symbols and cultural references that simply go borders.
When protesters in Jakarta, Kathmandu or Manila wave the flag of Jolly Roger from One Piece, they aren’t enticing in role-playing, however turning a cultural icon right into a residing brand of defiance.
