All across Indonesia, a familiar symbol is flying high all around. It is seen not just on trucks, but is also being waved in rallies and are now painted all around the city. This is not a traditional ...

A three-decade-old manga symbol may seem an unlikely rallying cry for disaffected young people in 2025, but the “One Piece” pirate flag has been at the forefront of recent protests against government ...

Yet cultural resonance alone does not explain the appeal. The “One Piece” flag caught on because it captured real-life grievances. In Nepal, where youth unemployment exceeds 20% and migration for work ...

A flag from the Japanese anime and manga series, One Piece, has become an unexpected symbol of protests driven by Gen-Zers who grew up watching the show, as young people across the world take to the ...

As Nepal’s famed Singha Durbar palace went up in flames last week, protesters determined to rattle the government hung a manga flag showing a skull wearing a straw hat against the building’s ornate ...

Along Indonesia’s city streets and country roads, the Southeast Asian nation’s red-and-white flag isn’t the only one you may see waving from cars, homes, and hands ahead of its Independence Day on ...

Why were Mexican “Generation Z” protesters flying an anime flag featuring a straw-hatted skull and cross-bones on Saturday? Protests erupted in multiple cities in Mexico this weekend. Reuters notes ...

Graphic courtesy of Maya Pegues In September 2025, Nepal saw two days of social unrest as young people took to the streets to demand an end to government corruption. Media coverage centered the ...

Nuurrianti Jalli is affiliated with Institute for Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) Yusof Ishak Institute Singapore as Non Residential Visiting Fellow for Media, Technology and Society Program. From ...

(THE CONVERSATION) From Paris and Rome to Jakarta, Indonesia, and New York, a curious banner has appeared in protest squares. With hollow cheeks, a broad grin and a straw hat with a red band, the ...