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About

PragerU's "The Lockdown Is The Greatest Mistake in the History of Humanity" Tweet is an image macro series based on an image posted by Prager University featuring PragerU co-founder Dennis Prager and the text "The lockdown is the greatest mistake in the history of humanity," referring to the quarantine and economic shutdown caused by the coronavirus outbreak. These memes include image edit parodies and comments generally expressing the opinion that PragerU's post was hyperbolic.

Origin

On April 28th, 2020, the verified Twitter ^[1] account for the right-wing nonprofit organization PragerU tweeted a photograph of Prager and the text "The lockdown is the greatest mistake in the history of humanity." They captioned the tweet, "It's time to call it what it is. #COVID19."

Spread

Following the post, people began posting image edits of the tweet. For example, Twitter^[2] user @neontaster tweeted the image with the phrase "This meme format" replacing the words "This lockdown." The post received more than 2,200 likes and 110 retweets in less than 24 hours (shown below, left). Others on Twitter mocked the image for ignoring other historical disasters. For example, Twitter^[4] user @KevinMKruse retweeted the image with the caption "(stares in historian)." The post received more than 8,100 likes and 700 retweets in less than 24 hours (shown below, center).

The post continued to spread to other platforms, such as Reddit, where a post by Redditor^[3] leocohen99 in the /r/PragerUrine subreddit received more than 1,600 points (99% upvoted) in less than 24 hours. The image also appeared on 4chan's /pol/ ^[5] messageboard, where it was included in a discussion about the "most boomer" things users have.

The following day, iFunny ^[6] user Colaws posted a group of parodies and the original version and wrote, "Guess which one is real for a special prize." The post received more than 290 reactions in less than 24 hours (shown below, right).

The Twitter account @WeWuzBoomers ^[7] shared the image. That day, Twitter user @CandenToMyHazel shared a video of the image and included a series of historical tragedies and mistakes. The post received more than 1,500 likes and 260 retweets in less than 24 hours (shown below).

pic.twitter.com/G0U0rcqPC2

— mel ⚢ (@CadenToMyHazel) April 29, 2020

Various Examples

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External References