Fuck The Police

1988catchphraseclassic

"Fuck The Police" (or FTP) is a catchphrase drawn from N.W.A's 1988 rap song that grew into a general anti-authority slogan across graffiti, T-shirts, and internet memes such as the Frog and Toad tandem bicycle Photoshop.

catchphrase memeship hop memesprotest memespre digital memesanti authority memes

Overview

"Fuck The Police," often shortened to FTP, is a catchphrase used to reject cops and, by extension, any authority figure worth mocking4. The phrase shows up as graffiti, bumper stickers, T-shirt slogans, and internet image macros, with roots in gangster rap and a later second life on message boards1.

What started as a protest song against police brutality in 1988 grew into a broader anti-authority slogan by the 2000s, then moved into meme space where the phrase often gets paired against wholesome or absurd imagery for ironic contrast3.

How It Spread

The first Urban Dictionary entry for the phrase was submitted on August 11th, 20034. On September 26th, 2006, YouTuber pizzim13 uploaded a mashup of clips from The Muppets set to N.W.A's track, which has been viewed over 110,000 times2.

In 2005, artist Dash Snow had already staged a gallery show titled "Fuck the Police" made from 45 newspaper clippings on police brutality, and by 2007 dozens of Facebook groups had appeared under variations of the title3.

On September 29th, 2010, Redditor RocketRobinhood posted a Photoshop to r/pics of Frog and Toad on a tandem bicycle with "FUCK THE POLICE" beneath the characters, drawing over 790 points before archiving; the Frog and Toad pairing later hit mainstream feeds again in May 2019 when Kelsey Dawn Williamson's Facebook photo of her toddler in a knockoff "Fuck the Police" T-shirt from China drew over 62,000 likes and a Twitter repost by @reginagorrge passed 189,000 likes and 39,000 retweets in two days3.

How to Use This Meme

The catchphrase works two ways online. As a straight slogan it gets stamped onto shirts, stickers, and graffiti to voice anti-cop sentiment4. As a meme format, the words often get Photoshopped over wholesome or unexpected art, with pizzim13's 2006 Muppets edit an early example of the joke pattern2.

Frequently Asked Questions

Fuck The Police

1988catchphraseclassic

"Fuck The Police" (or FTP) is a catchphrase drawn from N.W.A's 1988 rap song that grew into a general anti-authority slogan across graffiti, T-shirts, and internet memes such as the Frog and Toad tandem bicycle Photoshop.

catchphrase memes hip hop memes protest memes pre digital memes anti authority memes

Overview

"Fuck The Police," often shortened to FTP, is a catchphrase used to reject cops and, by extension, any authority figure worth mocking4. The phrase shows up as graffiti, bumper stickers, T-shirt slogans, and internet image macros, with roots in gangster rap and a later second life on message boards1.

What started as a protest song against police brutality in 1988 grew into a broader anti-authority slogan by the 2000s, then moved into meme space where the phrase often gets paired against wholesome or absurd imagery for ironic contrast3.

How It Spread

The first Urban Dictionary entry for the phrase was submitted on August 11th, 20034. On September 26th, 2006, YouTuber pizzim13 uploaded a mashup of clips from The Muppets set to N.W.A's track, which has been viewed over 110,000 times2.

In 2005, artist Dash Snow had already staged a gallery show titled "Fuck the Police" made from 45 newspaper clippings on police brutality, and by 2007 dozens of Facebook groups had appeared under variations of the title3.

On September 29th, 2010, Redditor RocketRobinhood posted a Photoshop to r/pics of Frog and Toad on a tandem bicycle with "FUCK THE POLICE" beneath the characters, drawing over 790 points before archiving; the Frog and Toad pairing later hit mainstream feeds again in May 2019 when Kelsey Dawn Williamson's Facebook photo of her toddler in a knockoff "Fuck the Police" T-shirt from China drew over 62,000 likes and a Twitter repost by @reginagorrge passed 189,000 likes and 39,000 retweets in two days3.

How to Use This Meme

The catchphrase works two ways online. As a straight slogan it gets stamped onto shirts, stickers, and graffiti to voice anti-cop sentiment4. As a meme format, the words often get Photoshopped over wholesome or unexpected art, with pizzim13's 2006 Muppets edit an early example of the joke pattern2.

Frequently Asked Questions