Can we reclaim π?
That was my most-used emoji in work chat ten years ago. Then someone told me that the white supremacists stole it. That pissed me off. We just rolled over and let those assholes have it?
Today I was curious about the status of this. This Anti-Defamation League page was at the top of my search, and it says:
The overwhelming usage of the βokayβ hand gesture today is still its traditional purpose as a gesture signifying assent or approval. As a result, someone who uses the symbol cannot be assumed to be using the symbol in either a trolling or, especially, white supremacist context unless other contextual evidence exists to support the contention. Since 2017, many people have been falsely accused of being racist or white supremacist for using the βokayβ gesture in its traditional and innocuous sense.
Those false accusations seem like a symptom of cancel culture β the hunger to point fingers, be outraged, virtue signal, feel righteous. Have we mostly moved on from that? Can I use my dang emoji again?
If the "overwhelming usage" is non-asshole-ish, then yes, I think I can!