What Does 'Millions Wear The Hats' Mean? Is 'Gnome Hunting' A Dog Whistle?

Right now, TikTok is full of videos and memes about people gnome hunting and many of those videos feature the phrase "millions wear the hats." While this may seem like innocent fun at first, similar to memes like the gnomepill or memes that claim gnomes are real, some suspect that the term "gnome hunting" is being used as an antisemitic dog whistle. Here's what you need to know.

What Is The 'Gnome Hunting' Meme?

Throughout the first half of 2023, memes claiming that gnomes are real started going viral on TikTok. Many of the memes show what is purported to be real footage of gnomes and tell people to open their eyes to the truth. Obviously, gnomes don't seem to exist, which is what makes these videos so funny.

However, as early as February, people started posting videos claiming they're hunting for gnomes. Some of these videos use footage of hunters to represent gnome hunters and others show the video creator walking around in the woods. A select few of these videos feature the term "hunting gnomes" followed by two lightning bolt Emojis, purportedly meant to visually represent the Schutzstaffel SS logo.

In April, the phrase "millions wear the hats" started popping up in the videos. The phrase may seem innocent at first, but some believe it is a reference to the alt-right catchphrase "billions must die", which references controversial ideology surrounding overpopulation, the great reset and ethnic cleansing.

How Is 'Gnome Hunting' And 'Millions Wear The Hats' Used In Memes?

The majority of gnome hunting videos use footage of hunters, sometimes from reality TV shows, along with captions about going gnome hunting. Some videos use another mythical creature in place of gnomes, like goblins or elves.

Other videos show footage of purported gnome sightings or footage of someone exploring a specific location, allegedly hunting for gnomes. Recently, however, people have been posting videos warning others about gnome hunting videos, specifically suggesting they're antisemitic dog whistles due to things like the lightning bolt Emojis and the phrase "millions wear the hats."

For the full details on gnome hunting, be sure to check out our entry on the meme here for even more information.