Wearing V For Vendetta Guy Fawkes Masks Declared Illegal In Dubai
from the self-defeating-actions dept
The evolution of the V for Vendetta Guy Fawkes mask from a clever element in a comic book and film to a meme and a global symbol of online and offline resistance has been quite remarkable. A highlight of that trend was earlier this year when MPs in the Polish parliament donned the masks in protest against ACTA, spurred on by massive street demonstrations against the treaty that had recently been held across Poland.
But if the mask has become a way of empowering and uniting protesters, aligning them with other movements around the world, it also becomes an obvious badge of dissent and rebellion, marking them out as a likely enemy of established power structures. It was thus probably only a matter of time before simply wearing a Guy Fawkes mask became grounds enough for the police to move in, as here:
Police officials in Dubai have warned against wearing a mask that symbolises opposition to state authority during any celebrations connected to National Day and declared it illegal.
Of course, this simply strengthens the credentials of anyone wearing such a mask, whether in Dubai or elsewhere. And that, in turn, will encourage others around the world to adopt it as a symbol of protest, probably prompting more governments to declare it as "illegal", which will boost its iconic power yet further.
Any person found wearing Guy Fawkes masks, also known as "Vendetta masks", risks police questioning as any object or action deemed to be instigating unrest or insulting the UAE is illegal, police officials said.
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Filed Under: dubai, free speech, guy fawkes mask, protest
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This same rule could be applied to one of those colored rubber wrist bands. This is business as usual for the UAE and fully in line with how their government has presented itself.
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Does that mean you will have to go to the Islam Re-Education Camp for Women.
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Masks of Mayhem
The ironic part of all this is that political protesters can easily pick another mask to wear while running rampant with their anarchy. It is true that people enjoy the mask and see it as a symbol of anti-Government protests but of course the mask is not reflective of the person behind it.
They seem to overlook that our history is filled with masks, when a person simply wants to be someone else or unknown for the evening, from the state ballroom to the darkest back alleys.
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This isn't talking about halloween, this isn't talking about a costume party, this is pointing out that during celebrations of their government wearing this mask because of what it symbolizes will directly violate their law with little room for innocent poor timing if that's even possible.
They have this power year round for any mask, any object, or any actions that they determine insults the UAE or instigates unrest. Of course any mask could work for a protestor, but all their choices are equally illegal because of the intent and how general their law is.
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> political protesters can easily pick
> another mask to wear while running
> rampant with their anarcy.
The UAE is a monarchy, which is basically a nicer-sounding euphemism for dictatorship. I'm not sure why everyone is surprised when a dictator dictates.
However, to your point about protesters just finding another mask, I'll point out that in our supposedly enlightened non-dicatatorship constitutional republic, here in the USA, at least one state-- North Carolina-- has outlawed *all* masks.
It's illegal to obscure your face in public in North Carolina with anything. No Fawkes masks, no masks of any kind are allowed. The statute makes an exception for bona fide religious practices and it does not apply during the week in which Halloween falls. Other than that, the cops can (and will) arrest you for wearing a mask in public.
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Wasn't the next step in the story total anarchy in the UK?
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The Future
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The Future
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Is anyone else reminded of Shadow of the Hegemon?
This situation with the Guy Fawkes masks reminds me of that. An overbearing government takes something simple and harmless, and turns it into the symbol of a revolution.
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Guy Fawkes masks
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Guy Fawkes Mask
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