The whole damn civilized world as we know it is in a bit of a rough place right now. Name a country and there’s likely turmoil or some sense of impending doom on the horizon. Turkey in particular is facing some of the largest protests the country has seen in years following the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, on March 19 over dubious allegations of corruption and bribery. “What on earth does this have to do with video games?” you ask (and I know you’re asking). Well, it seems that even Pikachu was upset by what many are categorizing as an authoritarian act on behalf of the Erdogan administration, with İmamoğlu running for president in the country’s 2028 elections for the opposition party.
The Pokemon-related incident in question happened early this morning, March 27, with the Republican People’s Party of Turkey CHP’s press account posting, “What can pepper spray do to you and me that even affects Pikachu?” according to Google Translate, with the hashtag #DirenPikachu, which translates to “#ResistPikachu.”
X user frelpia shared a video, apparently showing another angle of the costumed Pikachu protester, followed closely by someone halfway dressed as Spider-Man. An image posted by Zhangxueliang seems to confirm.
And while the situation over in Turkey is very serious, the appearance of everyone’s favorite electric mouse Pokémon has brought a bit of levity, with tons of humorous posts across social media.
And because it’s 2025, there’s no shortage of AI slop depicting Pikachu protesting. One popular image in particular is definitely fake, in case Pikachu floating above the pavement didn’t give it away.
As of today, more than 1,800 protestors have been arrested in Turkey following acts of police brutality against demonstrators. Multiple journalists have also been detained this week.
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