Gen Z revolutionaries of the world has a common emblem: a pirate flag of “One Piece”, the best -selling manga in history

The image, generally adorning a flag with a black background, comes from “One Piece”, a very loved Japanese manga.

And what started as the emblem of a fictitious pirate team almost three decades ago has become a powerful symbol of the resistance led by young people, appearing in manifestations of Indonesia and Nepal in the Philippines and France.

As a scholar of the media and democracy, I see the propagation of the joyful Roger of the pirates of straw hats – which has passed from pages of manga to protest squares – as an example of the way in which the generation Z rehas the cultural vocabulary of dissent.

Pop culture as a political expression

“One Piece” arrived at the birth of Gen-Z, created in 1997 by the Japanese manga artist Eiichiro Oda.

Since then, it has sold more than 500 million copies and has a Guinness world record for its publishing success.

He generated a long-term television series, live films and an industry more than $ 20 billion, with a license of goods alone generating around $ 720 million each year of Bandai Namco, the company better known to create Pac-Man and Tekken.

Basically, “One Piece” follows Monkey D. Luffy and his crew, the pirates of the straw hat, while they challenge a corrupt world government while looking for freedom and adventure.

For fans, the “One Piece” flag is not an occasional decoration but an emblem of challenge and perseverance. Luffy’s ability to expand beyond physical limits after the consumption of a magic fruit has become a powerful metaphor for resilience, while his unshakable quest for freedom against impossible dimensions resonates with young people who sail on political environments marked by corruption, inequality and authoritarian excess.

When the demonstrators adopt this flag, they do not simply import an aesthetic of popular culture, but rely on a story already readable to millions.

The flag has started to arise during demonstrations in recent years. He was agitated during a demonstration of “free Palestine” in 2023 in Indonesia and the same year in New York during a pro-Palestinian demonstration.

But it was in Indonesia in August 2025 that the political life of the flag really took place. There, the demonstrators kissed him to express the frustration of government policies and the dissatisfaction of corruption and inequalities. Timing coincided with government calls to patriotic exhibitions during independence celebrations, weakening the contrast between official nationalism and basic dissent.

The movement gained momentum when the authorities responded with strong criticisms of the use of the flag, inadvertently attracting attention to the symbol. Government representatives have described the displays of threats to national unity, while the demonstrators considered them legitimate expressions of political frustration.

Why the flag moves

The speed at which the Jolly Roger flag “a piece” widespread on the borders reflects the digital education of the Z generation. This is the first cohort to grow entirely online, immersed in memes, anime and world entertainment franchises. Their political communication is based on what researchers call “network audiences” – communities that form and act through digital platforms rather than formal organizations.

Solidarity in this context does not require membership or ideology. Instead, it depends on shared cultural references. A meme, a gesture or a flag can instantly have a meaning through the divisions of language, religion or geography. This form of connection is built on recognizable cultural codes which allow young people to identify with each other even when their political systems differ.

Social media give this solidarity the scope and speed. Videos of Indonesians by waving the flag were cut and tightened on Tiktok and Instagram, reaching the public far beyond their original context. As the symbol appeared in Kathmandu, the Nepalese capital, in September, it already bore the aura of the young challenge.

Above all, it was not a simple imitation. In Nepal, the flag was linked to anger at young people unemployment and the ostentatious richness of the political dynasties exposed online. In Indonesia, he reflected disillusionment with patriotic rituals that felt hollow in a context of corruption. In both cases, the Jolly Roger flag worked as an open source code – locally adaptable but instantly readable elsewhere.

Part of the efficiency of the flag comes from its ambiguity. Unlike a party logo, Jolly Roger’s flag “One Piece” is from popular culture, which makes governments difficult to suppress without appearing authoritarian. During the last demonstrations in Indonesia, the authorities confiscated banners and labeled them. But such repressions are only increasing the frustration of the public.

Fiction as reality

The “One Piece” flag is not the only one to be redesigned as a symbol of resistance.

In movements around the world, pop culture and digital culture have become a powerful resource for activists. In Chile and Beirut, the demonstrators wore joker masks as a visual stenography for anger against corruption and inequalities. In Thailand, the demonstrators turned to “Hamtaro”, an anime for children on a hamster, parodying his theme song and waving toys in plush for Political Lampoon Leaders.

This mixture of politics, entertainment and personal identity reflects a hybrid media environment in which symbols derive from Fandom gain power. They are easy to recognize, adapt and defend against state repression.

However, cultural resonance alone does not explain the call. The “a piece” flag has made its way because it captured real grievances. In Nepal, where unemployment of young people exceeds 20% and migration for work is common, the demonstrators paved the emblem with slogans such as “Gen Z is not silent” and “our future is not for sale”.

In Indonesia, some demonstrators argued that the national flag was “too sacred” to be piloted in a corrupt system, using the pirate banner as a disillusionment statement.

The propagation of the flag also reflects a broader change in the way in which the ideas of protest move through the borders. In the past, what tended to travel are tactics such as sit-ins, steps or hunger strikes. Today, what circulates more quickly are the symbols, the visual references of the global culture that can be adapted to local struggles while remaining instantly recognizable elsewhere.

The flag becomes global

The journey of the flag of Asian streets to demonstrations in France and Slovakia shows how the grammar of dissent has become global.

For young activists today, culture and politics are inseparable. The digital nativity has produced a generation that communicates grievances through memes, symbols and cultural references that easily cross borders.

When demonstrators in Jakarta, Kathmandu or Manila shake the joyful flag Roger “One Piece”, they do not engage in the room but transform a cultural icon into a living emblem of challenge.

Nuuranti Jalli, Deputy Professor of Professional Practice, School of Media and Strategic Communications, Oklahoma State University

This article is republished from the conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.