The Brief: On June 18, 2020, the hashtag #WhiteStrike started trending on Twitter with the majority of related posts making fun of those using the hashtag in earnest.

Bluesquiggle
DEEP DIVE

While the hashtag #WhiteStrike is being used by some people to suggest that white people should strike in retaliation for how they’re being treated in America, the majority of tweets that use the hashtag make fun of people who are using it seriously. #WhiteStrike, which started trending on Twitter in the United States on June 18, 2020, doesn’t appear to have a clear plan of action behind it. Rather, it is a way for white supremacists and other white people who believe they are oppressed to counter the rising support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Tweets dragging those who are using #WhiteStrike in earnest are largely burying tweets that support the hashtag. Some people have pointed out that the hashtag is an easy way to identify racists, as someone who is using the hashtag earnestly is likely a white supremacist. KPOP stans have started spamming the hashtag with unrelated content, similar to how they infiltrated the #WhiteOutWednesday hashtag earlier in the month.

This Twitter user made fun of so-called “white strikers” for being a bunch of Karens:

Although they are the minority, white people supporting the idea of a “White Strike” on Twitter are using the hashtag to express how they feel discriminated against.

Some Twitter uses have cited Atlanta police officers staging a sick out to protest the arrest of the officer who shot and killed Rayshard Brooks as an example of a #WhiteStrike.