Why Are People Calling Joe Biden 'Genocide Joe?' Biden's Nickname Explained

A new nickname used to refer to Joe Biden has been trending on social media on and off since the middle of October. 'Genocide Joe,' which implies that Joe Biden is supportive of, or even complicit in, genocide, is definitely not a moniker one would want to have or be remembered by. How did Joe Biden get the nickname and what exactly does it mean? Learn this and more in our brief explainer.

What Does 'Genocide Joe' Mean?

"Genocide Joe" is a nickname sometimes used to refer to the United States president Joe Biden, primarily in the context of the 2023 HAMAS-Israel conflict. The nickname implies that Joe Biden, who made statements of support for Israel and said that the United States will remain Israel's ally, is also supportive of genocide against Palestinians.

The "genocide" part comes from some people's belief that Israel is committing an ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian population in Gaza, a sentiment that was boosted by the October 17th, 2023 explosion at the al-Ahli Arab Hospital. The explosion led to multiple accusations of genocide against Israel in online discussions despite the blame for the blast being contested by both sides of the conflict.

How Did 'Genocide Joe' Originate?

Accusations of genocide against Israel, combined with Joe Biden's statements in support of the country, led to some users referring to Biden as "Genocide Joe" on X and other social media, with the nickname first achieving prominence in mid-October 2023. For example, on October 16th, 2023, X user @_bilaire used the hashtag "#GenocideJoe" in their tweet.

In the second half of October 2023, the nickname trended on X / Twitter several times, appearing in the "trending" section of the site which further boosted its popularity. As of October 18th, the moniker had been used on X nearly 12,000 times

Additionally, the "Genocide Joe" uses the same formula as "Sleepy Joe," a popular nickname for Joe Biden frequently used by his political opponent Donald Trump during the 2016 and 2020 election cycles and during his presidency.

For the full history of Genocide Joe, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.