How the watermelon became the symbol of Palestinian resistance

Since the Hamas massacre of October 7th, the watermelon seems to be everywhere on social media, with pro-Palestine activists often displaying it as an emoji next to their social media username. The watermelon’s symbolism extends beyond Palestinian borders, and has gained recognition and solidarity internationally.

So how did this fruit come to symbolize the Palestinian cause?

After the 1967 Six-Day War, Israeli authorities often banned the public display of the Palestinian flag and its colors, so Palestinians turned to other forms of resistance. The watermelon, its colors mirroring those of the Palestinian flag, became a clever substitute, allowing Palestinians to maintain a visible connection to their national identity. Since then, Palestinian artists have used the fruit in various forms to convey messages of resistance and hope.

But it was only in 2021 that the watermelon really resurfaced when an Israeli court ruled that Palestinian families based in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in East Jerusalem would be evicted.

In January 2023, Israel’s national security minister granted the police the power to confiscate Palestinian flags. There was an attempt to turn this into a law but before that could happen the government collapsed.

Fast forward to October 7th: After the Hamas massacre of October 7th, many Palestinian activists saw a decrease in the engagement of their social media posts, specifically those which included the words 'Free Palestine."

They worried that these posts had been shadow banned, which means that social media platforms were actively censoring their social media accounts to reduce the reach of their posts. They started to use the watermelon as an emoji next to their username and this became a viral internet trend.

The watermelon then continued to gain international popularity, being widely used by many anti-Israel activists to express dissatisfaction with Israel and protest the current Israel-Gaza war.

Although the watermelon is an unlikely emblem, its journey from a simple fruit to a symbol of defiance underscores the profound ways in which everyday objects can acquire deep political significance. This global embrace underscores its effectiveness as a unifying symbol that transcends cultural and linguistic barriers, once again proving that a picture is worth a thousand words.