IKEA shark Blåhaj has become an unexpected trans icon
One of these plush couples was the beloved Blåhaj the shark and Snuttig the polar bear—an image that seems to have stuck in the minds of many. Switzerland's same-sex marriage amendment was passed with a 64 percent yes vote and was entered into force in July 2022.
While it may be unclear exactly when Blåhaj became an unofficial mascot for the LGBTQ+ community, the blossoming popularity of this plush sea creature among trans people is best observed in online communities.that she had purchased a Blåhaj plush for her transgender nephew. She toldthat she credits the rise of the shark's popularity as an LGBTQ+ icon to several factors, including the IKEA same-sex marriage ad and the shark's online popularity in the mid-2010s. "It makes perfect sense to me because there was an incredible queer and trans scene on Tumblr back then," said Emi."In fact, Tumblr played a big role in me meeting queer and trans people, learning about my own gender and sexuality, and even buying my first breast forms and officially starting my transition." "I think there's been a give-and-take between queer and trans content creators, the broader queer and trans community, and IKEA itself that has made Blåhaj an icon," said Emi."So when I saw Blåhaj was back in stock near me, I snagged one immediately. I didn't need it for myself, but I did want to make my nephew feel special, and I think it worked like a charm.":"BLÅHAJ is one of our much-loved soft toys and we are happy to hear that people around the world regardless of who they are or how they decide to live their lives are continuing to celebrate and embrace the soft toy.":"It's kind of cute and has the trans flag colors—blueish body, white underbelly, pink mouth. Beyond that, I suspect it's just like any meme—it's something trans people have latched on to and claimed for trans culture because so few things are actually explicitly designed and marketed to us."by transgender navy veteran Monica Helms. First flown at a Pride Parade in Phoenix in 2000, it is made up of the colors blue, pink, and white. The light blue is placed to represent boys and the pink for girls, while the white is used to symbolize those who are transitioning or feel they have a neutral or no gender. It is designed so that whichever way the flag is flown it will always be correct. Of course, the color similarities between the flag and the IKEA plush are coincidental, but that doesn't mean that members of the LGBTQ+ community haven't been delighted by the connection.In 2021, social media users went into meltdown on news that Blåhaj was to be discontinued by the Swedish retailer. On September 26 IKEA U.K.'s Twitter account announced that the shark would be temporarily unavailable as a result of"supply issues."As the shark was out of stock in IKEA stores in Singapore, and Hong Kong and was no longer listed on its Chinese website, fans of Blåhaj went into panic mode, tweeting the company to implore them not to stop production of the toy. At the same time an online petition asking the retailer to continue selling the shark received thousands of signatures and a subreddit called r/savetheBlåhaj was even created. A picture of Redditor Victor's Blåhaj shark on his trans-flag themed bed set. The IKEA plush has become a favorite among the LGBTQ+ community thanks to internet memes and a shared community.Luckily the panic was calmed when IKEA USA tweeted that it had no plans to discontinue the beloved toy and today people are still picking up their own shark pals around the world. Despite a continued supply of Blåhaj, many people around the world are still struggling to get hold of one, with Twitter users sharing how they are not available in their area or that they do not live close enough to an IKEA store.user and Blåhaj fan Penguin."So getting a Blåhaj is sort of difficult. The ones that are available here are pretty expensive and not something I could just buy on a whim, but I am saving to buy a Blåhaj when I can." Elsewhere a market has arisen for copies of the shark onOn its website, IKEA says that Blåhaj is:"Big and safe to have by your side if you want to discover the world below the surface of the ocean."and come in two sizes, one around 39 inches for $29.99 and a new smaller 21-inch version for $7.99. Emi's nephew poses with his new IKEA Blåhaj shark. Gifted by his aunt, she told Newsweek:"When I saw Blåhaj was back in stock near me, I snagged one immediately. I didn't need it for myself, but I did want to make my nephew feel special, and I think it worked like a charm.”"I follow a ton of trans people on Twitter, and that's the first place I became aware of Blåhaj," said Emi who delighted her nephew with his own shark plush."I saw trans people with Blåhaj, and I heard trans people joking about how Blåhaj is the trans shark. I love internet in-jokes like that—especially at a time when transphobia is so prevalent in politics and pop culture—so I ate it up." Blåhaj isn't the first trans icon to come out of pop culture. In 2019 Donkey Kong made headlines after YouTuber hbomberguy live-streamed himself playingin support of U.K. charity Mermaids which supports trans kids and their families. Guests on the stream included
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