The violent origins of the Chudjak meme

Chudjak or Poljak is a type of Wojak designed to look like the 2019 El Paso mass shooter and is often used to mock a similar type of person. There are multiple variations of this character, but all of them sport a similar short haircut, square-rimmed glasses, and forehead lines indicative of constant angry brow-furrowing.

Users of the /pol/ forum on 4chan once attempted to co-opt the Chudjak and associate it with left-wing individuals but were largely unsuccessful. It's difficult to divorce this Wojak from its original intent due to its close resemblance to its inspiration.

Who is Chudjak?

The Chudjak was originally drawn to resemble the perpetrator of the 2019 mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. Before the attack, the shooter posted a manifesto to 8chan (a forum for users who were banned from 4chan for being too extreme) containing anti-immigrant and white nationalist screeds.

The attack, which occurred on August 3, left 23 dead and another 21 injured. The FBI investigated the act as a hate crime against the Latino community, and the shooter pleaded guilty to federal charges and was sentenced to 90 consecutive life sentences.

And thus, Chudjak was born. Modeled with the same face shape and style of glasses, his creator wanted him to represent the kind of person who might commit such a horrific crime.

Chudjak origins and Poljak

Chudjak appeared on left-wing 4chan boards in August 2019 some time after the shooting. Versions of the meme can be seen in comments as early as August 8, labeled as "le /pol/ face."

This Wojak was originally known as Poljak to refer to users of the /pol/ 4chan forum, where far-right views are common. Although the El Paso shooter was a member of 8chan, many of the forum's users originated from /pol/ and were expelled for promoting or celebrating violence.

Name change and spread

The new Wojak later gained the name Chudjak as he spread outside of 4chan, taking on a more well-known moniker for those whom some feel hold the most vile and repulsive opinions.

The word "chud" became associated with far-right politics in late 2019 and may be borrowed from the title and name of the creatures from the 1984 horror film C.H.U.D., short for "Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Dwellers."

Evidence from the Urban Dictionary suggests that "chud" has been used as a derogatory term to describe anyone considered repellent since at least 2003.

Chudjak meme mixing

Due to his associations with violent far-right views, Chudjak fit in neatly with the meme known as "The West has fallen. Billions must die." These statements, used as catchphrases, mock extreme reactions to mundane events or trends that may cause certain individuals to declare that it's all over for humanity.

It's therefore no surprise to find Chudjak in shirts reading "billions must die" as he holds his finger on a button, or in a McDonald's hat saying "Welcome to Chudburger. Millions must fry."

Introducing GigaChud

Meanwhile, in another attempt to reclaim Chudjak, /pol/ users created the GigaChud. This character attempts to mix the appearance of the El Paso shooter with the GigaChad—the platonic ideal of the ultimate Chad, a muscular man with a ridiculous jawline and slicked-back hair who represents ultra-masculinity.

Chudjak examples

Related memes:

• What is the Wifejak meme and where did she come from?
• How Wojak became the internet’s all-encompassing reaction meme
• The sad origins and redemption of the Soyjak meme
• The Virgin vs Chad meme, explained

The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.

Sign up to receive the Daily Dot’s Internet Insider newsletter for urgent news from the frontline of online.

The post The violent origins of the Chudjak meme appeared first on The Daily Dot.