“Belarusians are kitties”: how а verbal meme became a national symbol

Abstract

In the months that followed the Presidential election in Belarus, especially in August and September, we observed not only the contemporary history of the Belarusian protest of the second half of 2020, but also mythologization of this history, the creation of the self-image of a small quiet, kind and deeply good individual standing up to a powerful evil, the “Belarusian kitty.” The kitty has become a truly national symbol that stems as much from the national cultural mythology as from the contemporary Internet culture and is in sync with the national autostereotypes reflected in the opposition leadership narrative of Belarusians as peaceful, ethical, heroic and overall “incredible” people.