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Where The Mask Seen In Global Protests Is Made

By Krishnadev Calamur
Published July 4, 2013 at 9:45 AM EDT

Remember the mask from protests here ...

<strong><a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/06/11/154750736/has-occupy-crashed-or-just-begun">New York</a>:</strong> A young man with an Anonymous mask marches with Occupy Wall Street protesters on Nov. 11, 2011, at Zuccotti Park in New York.
Don Emmert / AFP/Getty Images
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AFP/Getty Images
New York: A young man with an Anonymous mask marches with Occupy Wall Street protesters on Nov. 11, 2011, at Zuccotti Park in New York.

... here ...

<strong><a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/11/23/165765488/egyptians-take-to-the-streets-after-president-expands-powers">Alexandria, Egypt</a>:</strong> A masked protester poses with a tear gas canister in front of a burning vehicle during clashes between opponents of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and his Islamist supporters on Dec. 21, 2012.
/ AP
/
AP
Alexandria, Egypt: A masked protester poses with a tear gas canister in front of a burning vehicle during clashes between opponents of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi and his Islamist supporters on Dec. 21, 2012.

... and here?

<strong><a href="http://menasolidaritynetwork.com/2012/05/02/tunisia-thousands-fill-streets-to-celebrate-may-day/">Tunis, Tunisia</a>:</strong> A man wears an Anonymous mask during a May Day rally on May 1.
Amine Landoulsi / AP
/
AP
Tunis, Tunisia: A man wears an Anonymous mask during a May Day rally on May 1.

Turns out some of those used here ...

<strong><a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2013/06/18/193101142/with-inspiration-from-turkey-brazil-discovers-mass-protests">Rio de Janeiro</a>:</strong> Demonstrators wearing Guy Fawkes masks and waving a Brazilian national flag march in downtown Rio on June 17 against higher public transportation fares and the use of public funds to finance international soccer tournaments.
Chsitophe Simon / AFP/Getty Images
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AFP/Getty Images
Rio de Janeiro: Demonstrators wearing Guy Fawkes masks and waving a Brazilian national flag march in downtown Rio on June 17 against higher public transportation fares and the use of public funds to finance international soccer tournaments.

... were made here:

During the Occupy protests two years ago, Slate had an excellent piece on the mask's origins and its use by protesters and the hacker group Anonymous. And The Guardian did a post on who owns the rights to the mask. Both are worth reading.

(h/t:)

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Krishnadev Calamur
Krishnadev Calamur is NPR's deputy Washington editor. In this role, he helps oversee planning of the Washington desk's news coverage. He also edits NPR's Supreme Court coverage. Previously, Calamur was an editor and staff writer at The Atlantic. This is his second stint at NPR, having previously worked on NPR's website from 2008-15. Calamur received an M.A. in journalism from the University of Missouri.
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