“Düzce in the eponymous northwestern Turkish province has erected a statue of the Rābiʿa sign in June 2017. Mayor Mehmet Keleş (AKP) argued that Turkey needed a symbol after the failed coup that shook the country in 2016. The text under the statue reads: “One homeland, one flag, one nation, one state.” In an unexpected clash of symbols, local members of the Grey Wolves criticized the statue, arguing that the Rābiʿa sign is a Muslim Brotherhood symbol being imposed on the Turks. They claim that the grey wolf is their national symbol, covering the statue with their own flag.”

Symbols, when they have deep roots in history, will never be able to develop completely new meaning. It can carry layers of meaning but never replace the old one. The quote referenced above mentions how Erdogan, the president of Turkey, has adopted the rābiʿa symbol into the AK (justice) party and built a statue for it. But he received backlash from the Grey Wolves party who hated that the contemporary, radically loaded symbol replaced something with such deep heritage: the grey wolf. But beneath the statue, Erdogan wrote the words: one homeland, one flag, one nation, one state. Erdogan did not write we support the Muslim Brotherhood. But people perceived it that way nonetheless. This is because when you deal with symbols, perception is reality.

We can see this with all the symbols we’re discussing today: The swastika, the grey wolf, and the rābiʿa. Each symbol has a history that influences how it is perceived for better or for worse. The swastika, though it isn’t inherently evil, will always carry a layer of the Nazi era and the horrors that happened then. The grey wolf will always carry an entire history of Turkic origins. And lastly, the rābiʿa sign, will always be a symbol tied to a history of anger and suffering. It will always reference the massacre that happened.

Article link: https://menasymbolism.com/2019/02/06/the-rabia-sign/

Image sources:

Figure 1: https://www.turkishminute.com/2017/06/22/nationalists-protest-installation-of-rabia-sign-statue-in-duzce/

Figure 2: https://www.yenisafak.com/en/photo-gallery/world/fifth-anniversary-of-egypts-rabaa-massacre-2032148/?page=2

“Several record labels balked when they heard the debut single STFU! – an aggressive, explicit response to the racist and festishistic comments she receives as a Japanese woman living in the west (“Have you ever thought about taping your big mouth shut? ‘Cause I have, many times,” she sings in the chorus). According to Rina, an unnamed major label pulled out of negotiations after she played them the track. She subsequently learned one of the executives had been calling her Rina Wagamama behind her back, somewhat proving the song’s point.”

In Act 2, Scene 6 of M. Butterfly, Gallimard finally visits Song after several weeks of not seeing her and finds her drunk and despairing. The alcohol gives Song enough courage to confront Gallimard about his affair with Renee. While doing so, she says that their conflict is due to an “old problem” in which men eventually grow tired of women if they have been with them for too long. Gallimard, knowing the power he has over Song, proposes a solution where she has to sacrifice her innocence, one of her most prized virtues, by stripping naked in front of him. Song expresses her discomfort, and Gallimard completely dismisses her concerns, to which she responds with the following: “Yes—and it is just like a white devil to use it against me. I can’t believe it. I thought myself so repulsed by the passive Oriental and the cruel white man. Now I see—we are always most revolted by the things hidden within us.”

This scene essentially epitomizes the stereotype of the Asian woman being submissive by nature in the crudest way possible. Gallimard was drawn to Song because he fetishized her innocence/modesty, and now, he is insisting that she strip that away in order to please him. In the BBC News article “Rina Sawayama: Turning familial pain into pop gold” by Mark Savage, we get to know the backstory of famous Japanese-British singer, songwriter, and model Rina Sawayama through her debut album Sawayama. On the album, there is one track tilted “STFU!”, which is an aggressive response to the racist, fetishistic, and stereotypical comments Sawayama receives as an Asian woman living in the West. Here are some of the lyrics:

How come you don’t expect me

To get mad when I’m angry?

You’ve never seen it though I know I’m not the only one

How come you don’t respect me?

Expecting fantasies

Leave our reality, why don’t you just sit down and

Shut the fuck up

My reason for choosing this article is that it directly applies to the scene previously discussed. The lyrics of the song “STFU!” convey a conversation where Sawayama confronts a dominant figure, which is most likely a white man. She asks him questions like, “How come you don’t expect me to get mad when I’m angry?” and “How come you don’t respect me?” She claims that he expects fantasies while completely ignoring the reality of what he’s doing, something Gallimard is doing to Song in this very scene. The only difference here is that Sawayama tells the dominant figure to “sit down and shut the fuck up,” while Song just allows Gallimard to take advantage of her. 

Works Cited:

Savage, Mark. “Rina Sawayama: Turning Familial Pain into Pop Gold.” BBC News, BBC, 23 

     Apr. 2020, www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-52380231. Accessed 28 April 2020.