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Pepe is the quintessential example of the internet discovering something funny, creating a joke from it, and giving it a life of its own. After web surfers discovered the huge-eyed frog, he was originally used for relatively innocuous purposes on sites such as 4chan (you'll still see him in generic "feels good man" and "feels bad man" memes). However, alt-right communities like 4chan's /pol/ and Reddit's /r/the_donald eventually latched on to him as a mascot for both racist views and support for Donald Trump.

Combine that close connection with mainstream exposure (Trump even tweeted an image of himself as Pepe) and it would be very, very hard to disassociate the character from the far right ideology he has come to represent. We checked in on both /pol/ and /r/the_donald, and both are celebrating Pepe's "death" as proof that they effectively own his identity.

You're not likely to see too many other examples of this happening. However, this also illustrates the sense of helplessness that creators sometimes face online. How do you take legal action to protect your work when anyone with a social account and a search engine can abuse it? Furie's decision to kill Pepe may be his best bet. He might not get to reclaim Pepe or get compensation, but he can at least prove that he's not involved in spreading hate.

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Pepe the Frog is dead, but that won't stop 4chan

New York Times

Pepe the Frog Is Dead, or So His Creator Hopes New York Times After a brief and tumultuous life, Pepe the Frog is dead. Or at least, that's how he was drawn in the latest comic strip from the artist who first created him. While the cartoon frog is sure to remain a fixture in some corners of social media, its ... Pepe the Frog became a hate symbol. Now he's just a dead hate symbol.Washington Post Alt-Right Meme 'Pepe The Frog' Laid To Rest Over The Weekend. Will He Stay Dead?Forbes Pepe the Frog 'is killed off to avoid being a hate symbol'BBC News The Verge -CBS San Francisco Bay Area -New York Magazine -TIME all 65 news articles »

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Pepe the Frog Is Dead, or So His Creator Hopes - New York Times

The cartoonist who created Pepe The Frog has killed off the character in a comic strip, followingmonths of trying to rehabilitate the frog after it was co-opted by the alt-right.

Artist Matt Furie created the cartoon character in 2005 for the comic book Boys Club, but it was not until the 2016 election that Pepe was adopted by the alt-right online as a mascot for their support of then-candidate Donald Trump.

Since then, the character has achieved notoriety as a symbol for white-supremacy, and was declared a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League.

Furie was devastated by the perversion of his beloved cartoon frog, upset that racists and anti-Semites are using a once peaceful frog-dude from my comic book as an icon of hate.

In a statement put out by Furie and cartoon publisher Fantagraphics in November, they referred to Pepe as an eternally chill comic book character and condemned the illegal and repulsive appropriations of the character by racist fringe groups linked to the alt right movement and the Donald Trump presidential campaign.

Furie launched a #SavePepe campaign to try and wrest back the frog from the alt-right and restore its image as a positive character. After waging the campaign for months, it appears Furie has now conceded defeat, finally killing off the character in a single cartoon strip showing Pepe in a casket.

While the symbolism of killing Pepe in a comic strip may finally put Furies mind at rest, its unclear it will have any effect on the frogs standing as an alt-right hero. On alt-right message boards, commenters celebrated Furies attempts to kill Pepe, claiming he has only made the frog stronger.

[image via screengrab]

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Creator of Pepe The Frog Kills Off Character; Alt-Right Celebrates - Mediaite

Spare a thought for poor Matt Furie, a wonderful indie comics creator whose Boys' Club comics featured a lovable frog called Pepe that was adopted by the neofascist movement (the so-called "alt-right") as a symbol for racism, xenophobia, homophobia, transphobia and misogyny.

Furie tried to rehabilitate his creation, which is classed by the Anti-Defamation League as a hate symbol, but did not succeed.

So yesterday, in a single page comic included in the Free Comic Book Day title World's Greatest Comics, Matt Furie killed off his creation.

I really feel for Furie -- it's hard to imagine a shittier fate for one's lovable creation that for it to be transformed into a symbol used by the worst people on the internet to harass and terrorize people. Furie and Fantagraphics published a Boys' Club anthology last year -- you can support him by getting a copy.

Today, on Free Comic Book Day, as part of Worlds Greatest Cartoonists, Furie published a one-page comicof Pepes wake. In the strip, Pepe lies in a casket while his Boys Club friends Landwolf, Brett, and Andy gather round to memorialize him. Though the tone is still marked by irreverent, slacker humor (Landwolf pours booze on Pepes face to toast him), its a clear declaration that Pepe is now dead. The alt-right has killed the joy.

Guess What Happened to Pepe the Frog on Free Comic Book Day [Marykate Jasper/The Mary Sue]

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Matt Furie celebrated yesterday's Free Comic Book Day by killing off Pepe the Frog - Boing Boing

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Saturday on Fox News Channels Watters World, author Ann Coulter reacted to the Obamacare repeal passing Housevote, saying shehopesit does notpass in the Senate becauseit willbe a win for the Democrats in 2018.

So, the Democrats think this is going to cost House Republicans in 2018. How do you see it? host Jesse Watters asked Coulter.

I think it probably will, she replied. Lets hope it doesnt pass the Senate. Healthcare has been socialist for a long time in this country, even before Obamacare came along. We have Veterans Affairs, Social Security Disability, Medicare; Medicaid Socialism doesnt work. I dont know why we have to keep explaining this to our representatives. It doesnt work. What you want is a free market. They wont separate the welfare cases from the free market cases. America is not going to allow people to die on the street.

Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent

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Ann Coulter: GOP Will Probably Lose in 2018 Because of Obamacare Repeal - Breitbart News