The Brief: In the wake of Joe Biden's presidential win, liberals and leftists are debating (and making memes about) whether or not it's time to "go back to brunch."

Bluesquiggle
DEEP DIVE

Since Joe Biden was elected president, “back to brunch” memes challenge the idea that life will return to “normal” once Trump is no longer president.

The phrase “back to brunch” refers to liberals returning to a sense of normalcy when Trump is voted out of office. It was famously seen on protest posters after the 2016 election with variations of “if Hillary won, we’d be at brunch right now.”

Progressives and leftists often push back on this idea that there won’t be anything to protest if Trump isn’t president, noting that white supremacy, poverty, imperialism, etc. won’t be solved simply by putting a Democrat in the White House. Before the election, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio Cortez warned people via Instagram Live that even if Biden wins, “I’m sorry to tell you, you’re not going back to brunch.”

Much of this discourse isn’t actually about the late morning/early afternoon meal itself. Memes and comments about “going back to brunch” typically see the idea as representative of movement towards complacency and acceptance of the status quo simply because Trump is out of office.

Although much of the talk around going back to brunch have been figurative, there were reports of upticks in brunch reservations for the weekend following the announcement of Biden’s win.