[ISAFIS Newsletter #13] Reconstructing Pop Culture: How Pop Culture Became a Symbol for Resistance

Written by: Dhiya Farras Suryakusuma Staff of Research and Development

For the past few years, there has been this unusual sighting found in protest movements all around the world. Black flags depicting a skull in a straw hat, cloths with different colours, and multicolored light sticks have become the “ornament” of said movements. These symbols turned out to be adapted from popular culture (pop culture) embedded in society. The existence of movements using pop culture as a symbol for resistance has shifted the definition of pop culture towards a more political and broader meaning.

Defining Pop Culture
There is no definite consensus on what pop culture actually is. A sociologist, Tony Bennett, and a Professor of Cultural Studies in University of Sunderland, John Storey, in Parker’s Toward a Definition of Popular Culture, wrote that pop culture can be defined as culture which is widely favoured or well liked by many people. Yet, pop culture is usually simply defined as a form of culture globalized and accepted by global society through media such as television, magazines, and the internet. Pop culture is commonly found in the form of songs, comic books, novels, movies, and other things usually considered art.

Up until a few years ago, pop culture was rarely seen as something more than a source of entertainment for many people. Society tends to consider it as something unimportant and a waste of time. This deep-rooted stigma that it is not significant or useful for one’s life causes the existence of pop culture to be usually simplified to merely “a form of culture enjoyed for leisure”. This stigma also reduces pop culture’s ability to reshape one’s viewpoint about how they see the world.

Yet, for the past few years, people have started to view pop culture as something more than mere entertainment. Nowadays, there is a shift in how people see pop culture and the meaning behind pop culture itself. Pop culture is now seen in a broader viewpoint because of its usage in protest movements all around the world. This shift in the meaning of pop culture has thus caused a reconstruction in the way we perceive pop culture: now, it is more than just media we consume for fun. 

Pop Culture as a Symbol for Resistance
Protest movements are not unusual phenomena, especially in democratic countries, where citizens generally have the freedom to speak about things that they feel are not ideal for them. Yet, for the past few years, these protest movements have been filled with a unique characteristic: the usage of plenty of symbols adopted from pop culture. This has given birth to the lingering concern that democracy in those countries has declined, causing people to  search for other ways to express their concerns through implicit symbols. Despite debates about its necessity, the usage of pop culture marks a unique trend in the way social movements have changed and adapted.

One of the current examples of this happened in Indonesia, where Indonesians have used the pirate flag from One Piece, a Japanese animated series, as a symbol for resistance against the government since July, 2025. The movement was driven by frustration towards the corrupt government, which has exacerbated the socio-economic gap between the rich and the poor. The use of the One Piece flag during the protests is backed by thorough consideration. One Piece‘s main character, Luffy D. Monkey tries to challenge the corrupt government in his world and uses the flag as the symbol for resistance against tyrants. Indonesians have now made the story their own, using the One Piece flag as a resistance symbol against injustice and corruption. The Indonesian government, though, viewed the flag as a threat to state wholeness and has thus banned the usage of the One Piece flag. This ban came out after Indonesians throughout the country raised the flag in place of the red-and-white state flag in August, the national month of independence.

Other countries, such as Nepal, have also used the One Piece flag as a symbol of resistance. The social movement in Nepal shares similarities to Indonesia’s, with both being born out of public frustration towards a corrupt government and elite perpetuation of the socio-economic gap. Moreover, some of Nepal’s politicians’ children flaunted lavish lifestyles in their social media accounts despite the majority of people in the country facing economic difficulties. The existence of the One Piece flag in this case is considered to be a symbol of solidarity, a show of cross-border resistance towards corrupt governments, and a tool to raise public awareness.

Other countries in Southeast Asia such as Thailand and Myanmar, have also used different forms of pop culture to show resistance. In Thailand, people used Harry Potter’s wand as a symbol of criticism towards the monarchy. Meanwhile, in Myanmar, people have adopted the three-fingered salute from Hunger Games to voice objections against the military junta. 

In South Korea, things went a little bit differently. Famous for its Korean Wave (Hallyu), people in South Korea used light sticks and played K-pop songs during protests as an act of resistance towards Yoon Suk Yeol, the country’s president at that time. The people demanded Yoon’s impeachment for applying martial law that could potentially harm the people. The existence of light sticks and K-pop songs during the protest movement marked the attempt of the South Korean people, especially the younger generation, to shift the negative view towards protest movements, which are usually identified as grim and unpleasant. 

Conclusion
The use of pop culture in protest movements all around the world has caused a shift in the way people see pop culture. Now, it is not merely entertainment, but also a creative way to show resistance against the government without using many words. Some countries, especially countries in Asia, have used various forms of pop culture in protests against their governments. For example, people in Indonesia and Nepal raised the One Piece flag, South Koreans waved light sticks, and Myanmar adopted the three-fingered salute from the movie The Hunger Games. The usage of these forms of pop culture in protests have become the symbol of youth-led movements and cross-border solidarity, making social movements more inclusive. Moreover, the use of pop culture in social movements can raise more awareness about the current situation in a country, not only to its own citizens, but also towards citizens in other countries as well. With its long history of art being political, the existence of pop culture has strengthened art’s position as a resistance symbol against the oppressor.

References
Harvey, L. (2025, September 20). Gen Z protesters are uniting behind a manga pirate flag. CNN. https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/19/asia/one-piece-flag-indonesia-nepal-protesters-intl-hnk-dst.

Ng, K. (2025, August 7). How a cartoon skull became a symbol of defiance in Indonesia. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ezvj4d111o.

Parker, H. N. (2011). TOWARD A DEFINITION OF POPULAR CULTURE. History and Theory, 50(2), 147–170. 

Quinley, C. (2021, February 8). Three-finger salute: Hunger Games symbol adopted by Myanmar protesters. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/08/three-finger-salute-hunger-games-symbol-adopted-by-myanmars-protesters.

Rashid, R. (2024, December 11). South Korea deploys K-pop light sticks and dance in protests against president. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/dec/12/south-korea-martial-law-protests-k-pop-and-glow-sticks.

Ratcliffe, R. (2025, September 24). ‘A symbol of liberation’: how the One Piece manga flag became the symbol of Asia’s gen Z protest movement. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/24/how-one-piece-manga-flag-became-symbol-asia-gen-z-protest-movement-liberation.

Reuters. (2020, August 4). Thailand protesters openly criticise monarchy in Harry Potter-themed rally. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/04/thailand-protesters-openly-criticise-monarchy-harry-potter-themed-rally.