Let’s be honest, we all love a good meme. There are Gen Z viewers scrolling on TikTok and grandparents showing you memes that were trending four months ago. It seems now that all generations can’t get enough of them. We all need a good laugh within these challenging times filled with the tension of politics, job insecurity, and rising inflation. But when does coping stop providing an excuse to delay examining the media we consume? I found myself asking this question after learning some of the backstories from my favorite memes.
TikTok is the mother lode for memes on the internet. There’s always a new meme coming from a saying, sound, or trending video. One of my favorite memes is the “My Shayla” sound that gained popularity in late 2024. The meme includes actor Tyrese Gibson crying over his struggles while fighting for custody of his daughter in 2017. He sobs into his hand while saying his daughter’s name to the camera. After learning the background of this meme, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of guilt. How long have I been laughing at another person’s pain? Now, two years have passed and I’ve noticed a growing pattern in what memes go viral, a pattern that has the potential to be intertwined with anti-Blackness.
In August 2024, writer Lauren Michelle Jackson released the article “We Need to Talk About Digital Blackface in GIFS” in Teen Vogue. In the article, she explains that the term digital blackface is used to describe various types of minstrel performance that become available in cyberspace. Black people are commonly used as memes to express extreme emotions like anger and annoyance. Black people then turn into caricatures for social media. When Black people are reduced to caricatures, it becomes easier to be desensitized to their expressions of turmoil. Black people’s pain gets erased. Then, their emotions and bodies are used as a canvas for any narrative, funny or not. This desensitization leads to moments like the “My Shayla” meme, where we find humor in Black trauma without realizing it. Humor, like other human aspects of life, does not exist in a vacuum. Although the intention of those memes may be lighthearted, it can escalate into something more serious.
“When Black people are reduced to caricatures, it becomes easier to be desensitized to their expressions of turmoil.”
In 2025, conversations about funding cuts to SNAP benefits quickly became a growing topic. Discussions of AI uses also became a growing topic. However, AI videos of Black women complaining about the cuts started to appear. The videos depicted Black women yelling at cashiers aggressively about their EBT cards declining. Some showed Black women stealing from stores. It may be shocking to see racism displayed on the internet in such an extreme way, but the foundation of this action is nothing new. Yet again, Black people are made into caricatures. Rather than for humor, their emotions and bodies are used to spread the same racism that calls for their dehumanization. So, how do we change our attitudes when it comes to memes?
It’s important to remember that meme culture is not inherently problematic. However, the way(s) we interact with these memes may be. We can avoid these problematic interactions by engaging with media mindfully. We can reflect on the possible rhetoric or stereotypes memes can create. If the majority of the memes you use to express anger feature Black women, that is something to reflect on. It’s also important to research the backgrounds of memes. Memes can come from people’s darkest moments or even problematic online spaces. Lastly, remember to punch up, not down. There’s a difference between laughing at epic fail compilations and at someone loudly crying at a funeral. There should be a sense of care when coming across someone’s most vulnerable moments. This goes for both online and offline interactions with others. These actions can uphold a standard of mindfulness in engaging with internet culture, allowing us to laugh at our favorite memes without the demise of others.