Several students have taken to social media to share humorous and relatable content about campus life.
Accounts ranging from Nicki Minaj memes to pictures of feet have cropped up over the past few months, fostering a sense of community among students surrounding aspects of college life specific to GW. Here are a few up-and-coming student-run accounts:
@gwu_affirmations
Started in April of this year, @gwu_affirmations posts sarcastic “affirmations” that highlight aspects of GW culture, like the Vern Express and a recent mold outbreak across campus. The Instagram account, which has accumulated more than 2,600 followers, posts GW-related pictures overlaid with graphics, glitter and text.
The student account owner spoke to The Hatchet under the condition of anonymity to keep their identity hidden from their followers.
“I think it’s more fun that way,” the account owner said. “I can interact with my friends through affirmations and they’ll have no idea it’s me. Or I end up talking to people that I don’t think I’d end up talking to otherwise because our classes and social circles are so different.”
The student said they were inspired by @nyuaffirmations to start the GW-version of the account.
In the future, @gwu_affirmations plans to coordinate fundraisers to use the platform as a philanthropic tool, but the details have yet to be finalized. After these fundraisers, the account owner said they will likely reveal their identity and stop posting on the account.
The account owner said knowing that their posts make other students laugh brings them joy.
“People reach out and say I made them laugh or made their day and it makes me really happy to know that,” the account owner said.
@foggybottombarbz
Avid Nicki Minaj listeners should look no further than @foggybottombarbz on Instagram for some GW-related Minaj memes. With just shy of 700 followers, the account chronicles fictional Nicki Minaj sightings across the Foggy Bottom campus through some clever photoshop.
Barbz, a passionate sect of Minaj’s fan base, flocked to the account. The account pretends to be run by “the real minaj” but post captions alternate between first and third person.
The account first posted on Aug. 25, photoshopping Minaj, who they referred to as Ms. Petty, into Kogan Plaza. The GW population was responsive with comments thanking the account for its “service” and made internal references to Nicki Minaj and her fanbase.
Other posts include pictures, like one of Minaj photoshopped into an Elliott School of International Affairs lecture hall with mathematical watermarks and the location set as “ECON.” Another post features Minaj photoshopped onto a Vex-like bus with the caption “mami Minaj decided to fulfill her biannual philanthropic pursuits by blessing the plebeians of the vern with her presence. Mother is so kind.”
The account owner did not return a request for comment.
@gwufeet
You’ve probably not seen anything quite like this feet-centric Instagram page. A five-member team runs @gwufeet and their job consists of collecting consensual feet picture submissions from students through their DMs. The ‘FEETuring,’ as they call it in their Instagram bio, of students’ feet gained popularity over the pandemic among those with a distinct sense of humor.
The creator of the account, who wishes to remain anonymous to be consistent with the account’s anonymous nature, started posting at the beginning of the last academic year as a way of inducing humor in a time when most students were away from campus.
“It’s important to remember that not everything in life has to be serious and I think this account is a prime example of this,” they said.
Satirical captions, crafted by the account creator, accompany each post. One post features a singular lost Crocs shoe with the caption, “LOST SHOE FOUND NEXT TO THE UNIVERSITY STUDENT CENTER!!!! Cinderella must have been late to the ball (camilla cabello version obviously) and was in a rush to sing with her mice friends.”
“I can’t believe how passionate GW students are about their feet,” they said. “I get submissions every day of feet that they want to be featured on the account. There was a gap in the GW community where feet-loving people weren’t being represented and this account has filled that void.”
@gwblackmold
As a mold outbreak spread across campus early last month, @gwblackmold on TikTok gained thousands of followers for its topical and humorous mold-related content.
Created by sophomore Elle Kleinfeld, @gwublackmold has accumulated more than 2,700 followers, with videos bringing in 3,000 to 800,000 views each.
Commenters often try to help one another identify mold and bubbling paint which can indicate a mold issue.
The account has only posted 16 videos, each one connecting the mold outbreak to another relevant issue, whether it’s as simple as a popular TikTok audio or as complex as the norovirus outbreak at Georgetown.
One video features the TikTok sound “Uhh who are you? I’m Pam, who are you? I’m the owner of this house.” The TikTok shows the account owner walking into her residence hall with the caption, “us coming back from class on a random Wednesday,” followed by an image of black mold with eyes and a mouth photoshopped on corresponding with the “I’m the owner of this house,” portion of the audio.
