This pattern of memes starting out ironically is a common trend among the more sardonic corners of the internet, but by hiding behind a mask of вЂњedgyвЂќ or вЂњspicyвЂќ memes, content played out for good fun can hide true messaging. Originally popularized by players of Paradox InteractiveвЂ™s grand strategy video game genre, the meme soon spread to becoming a staple of alt-right discourse, usually connected with notions of removing Muslims from Western societies or restoring Istanbul to Christian rule. But the meme soon lost its original ironic purpose. A Turkish internet user famously parodied the racist incoherence of Serbian nationalists through a satirical rant that ended by just repeating the phrase. The вЂњkebabвЂќ in question being removed refers to the thousands of Bosniak Muslims and Turks exterminated by Serbian forces. One of the most insidious memes the shooterвЂ™s manifesto uses is the вЂњremove kebabвЂќ meme, which originates from a Serbian propaganda song celebrating Serbian nationalism during the Yugoslav wars. From Gamergate to 4chan, it is clear that video game culture and obscure memes run through the veins of far-right discourse and organizing. And finally, it sarcastically claims that the 1999 kid-friendly platformer video game Spyro the Dragon informed the shooterвЂ™s violent ethnonationalism. It calls for the extermination of Muslims and Turks across Europe. It argues that immigration is an unarmed invasion and thus the violence of the shooting was justified as self-defense. Titled вЂњThe Great Replacement,вЂќ a reference to a conspiracy theory that non-white immigration is part of a plot to вЂњreplaceвЂќ white people with people of color, the shooterвЂ™s manifesto cites decreasing white birth rates, the prevalence of queer people, and Jewish influence as responsible for western collapse. A simple look at the shooterвЂ™s manifesto reveals a collection of ironic statements, tongue-in-cheek in-jokes and other internet memes, a foreign language for some, but classic staples of any internet dialogue. There is more to the shooting, however, than just the reactionary and racist. But it is clear that the shooting is a part of a broader rising tide of white nationalist violence and terrorism. The Christchurch massacre on March 15 utterly shocked the world with its brutality, devastating a Muslim community which thought itself safe from the forces of Islamophobia.

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